A Forgotten Prophecy
by elphaba reincarnated
Summary: Follows Elphaba and the people at Shiz while she's in the Emerald City. With a twist, of course. Fiyeraba.
1. A Forgotten Prophecy

**okay, okay! i don't own wicked! god...can't a girl dream? well, anyway... enjoy!**

**Prophecy**

A Historie of Lurline and Kumbrica:

C_enturies past, emerged the sun _

_From shadows forth, two ladies come_

_One of beauty, one defiance_

_Together came to for alliance_

_Until disturbance covered Oz_

_Friends did part, new rule the cause_

_Kumbrica, fair, the cause did fight_

_Fair Lurline, she think saw a light_

_Ere kept Kumbrica to the west_

_To help the Winkies, so oppressed_

_New rule, himself a 'vizier' claimed_

_Lurline close kept embracing fame_

_Kumbrica caught in untimely niche_

_Enemies made proclaimed her 'witch'_

_Vizier ere irked by hag he fought_

_Ordered Vinkus stormed and wicked caught_

_The storm in went to do the deed_

_Before too long they did succeed_

_Kumbrica now was thrown in prison_

_As Lurline had in power risen_

_Kumbrica's neck within the collar_

_Screamed to Oz an urgent holler_

"_It is for your sins that I must die_

_Now for a martyred cause I'll lie._

_Lurline, it is now for you_

_To save all Oz for friendship true."_

_The Viziers men, they tied her tight_

_All Oz witnessed the end of her fight_

_Her last words, " I SHALL RETURN"_

_Were heard by them as she was burned._

_Kumbrica gone, Lurline, she wept_

_Though her word true, her promise kept._

_The old vizier she'd over thrown_

_Now her whereabouts unknown_

_Thus comes to Oz confusion and realization. Evil lurks in the shadows of Oz_

_Historical Notes:_

_The Vinkus today consists of many different tribes including the Arjiki, the main tribe, the Bamtup, and the Gao. They have little or none to do with theology, but in the odd religious cases, Kumbrica is oft worshipped rather than Lurline. It seem as if it is a lasting 'thank you' for the help that Kumbrica gave them when the Vizier Robert Diggs (who seemingly appeared out of a violent storm) crowned himself and began a campaign against the tribes of the Vinkus because of their different traditions, such as tattooing the skin and the widespread disbelief in a so-called 'God', known elsewhere as the Unnamed. As for the verse 'now her whereabouts unknown', we understand that this was before Lurline's great thirst. We assume that these 'unknown whereabouts was actually on the peak of Mount Runcible seeing as for years after Lurline disappeared and before the great flood, drought throughout the Vinkus and Munchkinland. It is believed that when Lurline asked the deserts for water, the water supplies beneath those two areas were drained._

_As for those who followed Kumbrica, the most powerful and clever of those have come to be called Kumbric Witches. Their aptitude in magic far exceeds that written in textbooks. It is rumored that a spell book was written by the early, most powerful of the Witches, called the Grimmerie. Record was lost of this book shortly after the Vizier Robert Diggs was banished to the Other World. Variations of the Hag's name are in circulation today including Kumbrica, and Kumbricia. _

Elphaba, age 10

Elphaba sighed as she finished the old prophecy from the Vinkus. She found a great appreciation for Kumbrica. Her strength, her drive, her trenchant and clear views on the goings on of Oz. Being green-skinned, Elphaba had little motivation, but was very clear headed. She knew about the Animal Banns and how unfair they were, but what was she to do about it? Green skin didn't exactly incline people to talk to, let alone listen to. After reading the old poem, she thought to herself. Kumbrica wasn't exactly… aesthetically pleasing, but she could go about with her business like any other person. That was what made her strong, Elphaba decided. If Kumbrica could fight for a cause as large a protecting an entire race, surely Elphaba could follow the example. Even if it were just getting herself through life…

Age 17

For the past seven years, Elphaba had become much more motivated to do things her way. She studied hard, finding an interest in life sciences and ancient philosophy. Her favorite subject, though, was the Animals and their relation with the human and animal world. In her time, she had met some very interesting Animals and learned more of their strife than the periodicals told her. She oft campaigned for Animal rights, when the subject occurred. Her studies and her different views managed to get her a scholarship to the prestigious Shiz University. When her father got wind of the news, he practically shooed her out the door.

"Fabala, hurry up. Your carriage is waiting!" Frex shouted to her.

"I'll miss you, too, father" She responded sarcastically as she wheeled her sister, Nessarose, into the room. Nanny stood behind her with her bags. "Goodbye, Nessa. I'll be back to visit soon." She bent down awkwardly to hug her sister, and then gathered her bags to go.

"Bye, Elphaba! I'll miss you. Don't forget to write!" Nessa called after her.

"You take care, and remember what I told you!" Nanny said. Elphaba rolled her eyes as she stepped into the carriage. Nanny was always going on about how boys were only after one thing. Especially college boys, Nanny had said. As if they'd want to be within ten feet of me, Elphaba had responded bluntly. She smiled. This was going to be an interesting year.

After two long days in the carriage, Elphaba was finally at Shiz. She stepped out with all of her things, which was just two large bags, and stared amazedly at the large, beautiful campus in front of her. Everybody around her stopped to stare. She walked on, fascinated, completely oblivious to the rude comments from the crowds.

She went to a large meeting hall to be placed into a dorm. She waited patiently as the names were being called out. There was a disturbance in the crowd when one name was called. Galinda Upland of the Adruennas.

"Excuse me! Madam Morrible!" A high voice called from the crowd. A small blonde girl wearing the latest Ozian fashions made her way to the front of the hall.

"Miss Galinda, I presume?" the headmistress sniffed. Her eyes widened slightly as she raised her eyebrows. Elphaba stifled a snicker. Madam Morrible looked undeniably like a fish.

"Yes" said the Galinda. "I believe that my parents had requested a private dorm for my term here. You see, my Ama Clutch would normally be here right now got held up in a horrible accidentation on the way here."

Elphaba tried not to laugh at her terrible grammar. She refocused on the conversation to keep herself entertained.

"Hmmm… you aren't on the list for private dorms" Madam Morrible responded as she looked through some papers in her hands. " However, if there is some reason that your Ama is unable to chaperone 15 girls, then special measures can be taken"

"Actually…" Galinda started, "My Ama was involved in a terrible accident years ago… I don't like to talk about it really. However, she suffers from occasional delirium cause by head trauma. She can't recall what happened during the accident. She was out for months."

Elphaba smiled at this. It was so obvious that Galinda was lying. All of this in a vain attempt to get her own dorm. At least no one has to deal with THAT self-centered, superficial girl as a roommate, she thought to herself.

"Ahh… traumatic amnesia." Madam Morrible said. "Considering your special situation, I can make an exception in arranging the dorms. Do you think that your Ama can care for one other girl, rather than fifteen?"

"Well… I suppose"

"Then that settles it. Elphaba Thropp, come meet your new roommate."

Elphaba's jaw dropped open as she silently gathered her things. Galinda's eyes widened as she saw her new roommate come to the front to join her. This WAS going to be an interesting year.

**whew... done! i'm not continuing w/ the story unless people tell me they like it (hint.hint). **


	2. Deal

okay... so i finally have another chapter! it sticks pretty closely with the book. very closely, actually... it's mostly just to develop characters and blah... the next chapter is DEFINATELY going to be more exciting. whoo!

* * *

Deal

The first few months of Shiz followed the same monotonous routine. Elphaba and Galinda would wake up early, have tea with Ama Clutch, and go to classes. Galinda would go out with her friends while Elphaba went back to the dorms. Elphaba noticed that Galinda had befriended the most shallow, appearance centered girls in Shiz, other than herself. They managed to go months without talking to each other, and that suited both of them just fine. Elphaba kept herself entertained by reading and learning new things about the Animals from Doctor Dillamond, the sole Animal professor at Shiz. As of late, Doctor Dillamond had been conducting experiments that could find the link between Animals and humans. Finding this would consequently lift the bans from the Animals completely. Since it was the spring holiday, she would often go to his office and help him with his studies, writing notes and finding new information on the Animals. She didn't quite understand everything that the Goat rambled about, but she found it completely fascinating.

"Doctor Dillamond, your research is amazing. Why aren't you making this a big deal? You could have supporters everywhere trying to help you reach your goal! You could get there faster." Elphaba said.

"Now, I've thought about this for some time. From the beginning, actually. I've decided that while I would have many supporters in this case, I would have many more people trying to stop my research. I believe that once I have enough evidence to prove for certain that we aren't so different from humans." Doctor Dillamond responded. He looked at Elphaba sternly. "You haven't told anyone, have you Miss Elphaba?"

"NO!" She responded. "I just wanted to know why. I figured that you had your reasons for keeping this secret."

"Good. Let's keep it that way" Doctor Dillamond said going back to his work. "We wouldn't want our infamous Wizard to catch us at it, would we?"

"So, why'd you tell me?" She asked quietly.

"Well, I saw that you were a determined girl with a good head on her shoulders." He said looking at her with a wise smile. "And obviously you know how it feels to be exploited and labeled as…"

"Different?" She offered.

He nodded. He looked back to his papers and his eyes widened. A large smile spread across his bristly face.

"Miss Elphaba, get a pen and paper. I think I've found something!"

For the rest of the afternoon, Doctor Dillamond dictated excitedly and Elphaba struggled to keep up. By five thirty in the evening, the professor realized the how long they'd been working and sent Elphaba off.

"You've done more than enough for one day, Miss Thropp. I can finish up here."

Elphaba picked up her books and quickly waved goodbye to her friend as she left. As she hurried out the door, she ran into a short boy. She picked herself up from the ground and looked questioningly at the boy.

"Uhh… Hi, I'm Boq… Do I know you?"

"Do you always hide behind doors, or is it just a new hobby, spying on Animals?"

He looked at the ground quickly and looked back up again. He seemed to search her face. She raised an eyebrow at him.

"Stare much?" She asked coldly.

"Oh.. sorry. It's just…"

"Never seen a green girl before?"

"No!" He exclaimed. "Actually, just the opposite… Elphie?"

"Excuse me?" She said, flinching at the old nickname.

"Sorry. Elphaba. Right? The Thropp Third Descending? Remember me? We went to day school together in Wend Hardings? Boq."

"Were you the one who threw the rocks at me?" She asked stiffly.

"I –"

"Or were you the frog that I would talk to in the swamps? Oh, yes! I'm seeing the resemblance now. How you managed a semi human form is beyond me, but—"

"Miss Elphaba! Such words are not necessary" A high voice called behind her. There was Galinda standing behind her with her hands on her hips.

"Funny. You don't feel the need to give me the time of day any other time, but you feel like you can scold me" Elphaba replied shortly. " If you don't mind, I'll be in my room." She ran off toward the dorms leaving a very confused Boq and Galinda behind her.

"Oh, don't even bother with her. She's just angry because she has no friends besides that old Goat Doctor Dillamond" Galinda said, breaking the silence.

"Why did she talk like that?" Asked Boq still staring after Elphaba in surprise. Galinda looked at him for a moment. She realized what Elphaba was talking about. Boq did kind of resemble a frog, but he was cute. Adorable, like a little ragdoll.

"Hmm…" She thought for a moment. "Perhaps she didn't like being recognized for her appearance"

"But she's GREEN" He cried furiously. " How can you FORGET?"

Galinda stared at him with a questioning look. He seemed to blush.

"Well, if you're done, I suppose I should be going. I'll see if I can talk to Elphaba later." Galinda said, uncomfortable. She walked away toward the girls dorms.

"Bye…" Boq whispered as he watched her walk away.

As Galinda made her way to the dorms, she couldn't help but think about what make her disturbing roommate react the way she did with Boq. Maybe she does have feelings. Perhaps she IS hurt when people make fun of her and stare at her. She found herself at her dorm. She walked into her room and looked at her roommate huddled in her bed with the covers pulled over her face. Galinda sighed and changed to go the sleep before plopping onto her own bed. That night, she finally thought about someone else's feelings, rather than her own. How did some green girl manage to make her think without even saying three sentences to her?

The next morning, Galinda attempted conversation with her roommate.

"Elphie, huh?" She asked her, smirking a bit.

"What?"

"The Munchkin boy, Biq was it? He called you Elphie."

"Oh… that. It was an old nickname when I was in day school. I despise it." Elphaba looked questioningly at her roommate. What was she up to, talking to her out of nowhere?

"I think it's cute! Elphie…" She said again testing it. "Can I call you that?"

"Can I stop you?" Elphaba asked realistically.

"No."

Elphaba rolled her eyes and picked up a book to read.

"Why are you always reading?" Galinda asked her. She was in a talking mood now.

"Because I like to read"

"Why? It's so dull! You know what I think?"

"Do I want to know?"

"I think you should take a break from reading those boring old books."

Elphaba looked up. "And do what? It's not like there's anything else to do."

Galinda thought for a moment. She looked at Elphaba. "I KNOW! Makeovers!"

"Uhhh…how about not?"

"Oh come on! It'll be fun! I'll make you popular!"

"Oh…I can see it in the papers now: " Green Girl Made Popular, The New Exhibit at Shiz University"" Elphaba said sarcastically. Galinda was too busy getting out different clothes and make up to catch on.

"Exactly… now where's that hat…?"

What have I gotten myself into? Elphaba asked herself as Galinda was fussing with her hair. I'm going to regret this tomorrow…

Galinda looked at the girl in front of her. The girl who she had thought to be the ugliest thing in Oz wasn't actually so bad. Beautiful in her own way. Now if she would only keep her hair down. I wish I had hair like that… Galinda thought enviously. After a few more minutes of silence, Galinda couldn't take it anymore.

"So, did you actually know Boq?"

"That again?"

"Yes. Now, did you?"

"It's possible. I went to a day school in Munchkinland and he didn't seem to alarmed to see a green person."

"You should apologize to him."

Elphaba turned to Galinda. "After losing my temper like that, I'd be surprised if he still went to Shiz."

Suddenly they heard a noise outside of their window. Elphaba stood up and walked to the window.

"Are you done?" She asked.

"Yes, why? What was it?"

"I don't know. Probably nothing, but I'm going to go check." Elphaba replied before she walked through the door. "Oh, and thank you."

"You're welcome!"

Elphaba stopped for a moment and looked at her roommate, " You can do better than them, you know. You act dumb sometimes, but I know you're smart enough to know that you're 'friends' are superficial jerks."

Galinda stared at her hard, then started putting her things away. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Elphaba sighed as she walked through the door and into the garden. She looked around quickly. Her gaze fell upon a tree that led up to her dormroom window. She smirked and looked up.

" Bird watching, right?" She called up the tree. She held in a laugh as the boy in the tree lost his balance and fell.

"Oh… Miss Elphie – sorry… Elphaba. I didn't know you were here." Elphaba raised an eyebrow and she stared at Boq.

"So, you like Miss Galinda?"

"Erm… Well, I think that she's very pretty and would like to get to know her better, yes. What did you do to you're hair?" He asked trying to change the subject.

"Oh, you didn't see? Galinda had a crazy idea that she was going to make me popular. Sometimes I don't know what goes on inside of that little blonde skull"

"And you LET her?" Boq asked incredulously.

"I ran out of books" She said stiffly. Boq laughed. He looked at her and thought he saw the ghost of a smile on her face.

"Well, it looks nice. Just promise you won't start wearing pink." He said, warming up to the girl. "Oh… and um… how do you know Miss Galinda?"

"Unfortunately, Miss Upland is my roommate." She explained.

"Roommate? No one's ever mentioned…" He seemed to go deep into thought. Elphaba stared at him after a moment.

"Oz to Boq." She said smirking at him. He remembered she was there. "Whatever you're planning to get my fluff-brained roommate to go out with you, I won't have anything to do with it."

"What—is it that obvious that I like her?"

"I'm not sure if it was the drooling or the stalking that tipped me off."

"I drool?" He asked wide-eyed. Elphaba laughed.

"You know, seeing as how oblivious to reality you are, maybe you are a worthy suitor for Galinda."

"You'll help?" Boq asked excited.

"I never said that… but this seems like a nice challenge." She said thoughtfully. She saw the pleading look on Boq's face. It disgusted her, but at the same time she didn't want to lose her first friend at Shiz. "So… If I do help you, how do I benefit?"

"Uhh… I could help with whatever you and Doctor Dillamond are researching." He offered. "I work at the library on the boy's campus. You're studying the existence of Animals, right?"

"Why so interested?" Elphaba asked suspiciously.

"Well, Doctor Dillamond happens to be the best life sciences teachers Shiz has ever seen. Not to mention his theories are both amazing and feasible. I'd be honored to help"

"Fine. I'll get Galinda down to meet you in…say three days. Same place, same time. It'll take a while to get her to come, no offence."

"Great! I'll find some books as soon as I can. We can meet for lunch tomorrow."

"Fine. See you then. Just don't mention the experiment to anyone else." Elphaba said as she made her way back to her room. She felt kind of bad about how she had treated the Munchkin boy earlier. She just hoped that she could get Galinda to go with her to meet Boq.

When she returned to the dorm, she found Galinda talking to Ama Clutch.

"So, what was the noise?" Galinda asked her.

"Oh… nothing. Just a falling branch." Elphaba responded as she went to get her things for bed.

"And what kept you for so long?"

"Just checking on the garden. The peas are beginning to flower." She replied.

"And I suppose that you were just talking to the flowers, right, Duckie?" Ama Clutch asked suspicious.

Elphaba looked at her and smiled. "Yes. They grow better when they're talked to." With that, she walked into the bathroom and changed for bed. Ama Clutch rolled her eyes and busied herself with one of Galinda's garments that had ripped. When Elphaba came out of the bathroom, Galinda was asleep and Ama Clutch had gone into her little room. I guess I'll be talking to Galinda tomorrow, she thought to herself.

The next day, she spent the morning with Doctor Dillamond writing down his latest finds. She didn't catch much of what he meant other than that learning more about the history of Animals might help him make another find. In the afternoon, Elphaba waited in the courtyard for Boq. Soon enough, he came running to her, out of breath and smiling.

"What did you just win a race?" Elphaba asked sarcastically.

"Ha, ha." He said. "I just dodged the librarian after swiping this book. It's a really old book…" He said holding it out. The cover was decorated with pictures of different animals (or were they Animals?) in the margins. In the center was a smudged title. " See, I flipped through it for a while and I think that it's about the creation of Animals. I wasn't really thinking when I took it. It's not really stealing… I'm going to bring it back eventually."

Elphaba took the book from him and flipped gently through the pages. It was filled with legends and pictures depicting people's predictions on the creation of the Animals. "How did you get it out of there?" She asked, thoroughly amused.

"Well, two of my friends work there as well. Crope and Tibbett, perhaps you know them? Well, they distracted him for me."

Elphaba eyed him carefully. "You told them?"

"I didn't tell them everything! Only that I needed to get this book. They're up to anything that gives them an excuse to crossdress."

"Whatever floats their boat…" She said dismissively. "This book will be a great help. Doctor Dillamond was just telling me how he needed more information on this. Thank you ."

"No problem. Have you talked to Galinda?"

"Not yet. I'm not exactly going to go up to her and say "Hey, you remember that Munckin boy, Boq, that you met for less than five minutes? Well, he wants to go out with you. You're first date is on Friday." Yeah… that'll work out perfectly."

"Just remember, okay? I risked getting expelled for that stunt"

Elphaba waved away the comment as she made her way back to Doctor Dillamond's office. She gave him the book and left again to go back to her dorm. Boq had kept up his half of the deal, now it was her turn.

* * *

Yeah... next chapter will be better, i SWEAR! please direct any comments, complaints, and questions to the little bluish button at the lower left of your screen. i'll try to get back to you. by the way, i would like to thank the peoples that commented on the first chapter. ever grateful.

Annibelle White: I actually read your story a day or two after I posted mine. that was kinda creepy. great story though! as for discussing the whole Kubrician ideals, sounds cool. IM me or something.


	3. Tricks, News, and an old Book

_Still don't own Wicked. If I did... oh, the things i'd do. I thought that this chapter would be more exciting. I t is, but not by much. The next chapter, I swear on Kumbrica!_

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Only after tricking Galinda was Elphaba able to get her to come to the gardens. Boq, sitting under a tree, looked as if he'd been waiting there for some time.

"Elphie, I don't see a photographer from the Oziad—"

"Sorry Galinda, my mistake. Oh! Look, it's Boq." She said with mock surprise. Boq stood up from under a tree and stared at Galinda.

"Uh—I—H-hello, Miss Galinda. I'm Boq." He said introducing himself. Galinda looked confused, but played along.

"It's a pleasure. Were you the one that Elphaba was yelling at a few weeks ago?" She asked. Elphaba looked down.

"Oh, that? Old news. We're friends now." Boq said as casually as he could.

"Friends? That's great" She said looking at Elphaba, surprised that her roommate had made a friend.

"Pay no attention to the girl behind the tree" Elphaba muttered. "This is your conversation."

Galinda furrowed her brow. Now she was confused. Their conversation? Was this whole thing planned? She looked at Boq.

"What's going on?"

"Uhh…Well, Miss Galinda—"

"Call me Galinda"

"Galinda… I was wondering if you would like to—uhh—come with me to lunch tomorrow…?" He said stumbling with his words.

"Like on a date?" Galinda asked slowly. She didn't really want to go out with someone of Boq's type, meaning poor and unpopular. She also didn't want to hurt his feelings.

"Well, only if you want it to be…" He said, getting a little excited.

"How about this, I'll go to lunch with you, but as friends. We wouldn't want to rush into anything, now would we? That isn't good for anybody." Galinda offered diplomatically.

"Of course!" Boq said quickly. "So, I'll come by around…"

"Noon?" Galinda suggested.

"Great!" He said excitedly. He seemed to grow an inch or two as he stood up straighter, proud of his accomplishments. Even so, his eye-level was somewhere around Galinda's nose. 'It's a good thing Galinda's short' Elphaba thought, barely listening to their conversation. 'Or this might be even more awkward' She smiled at the thought of Boq asking someone of her height. She was half a head taller than Galinda.

"So, I see that you're doing fairly well, so I think I'll leave." Elphaba said to the pair. Galinda looked at her watch.

"Oh, dear! It's getting late, and I have some work to do!" said Galinda. "I'll see you tomorrow, then"

She said as she wave to Boq and caught up with Elphaba.

"Bye!" Boq called to her. He walked back to his dorm with a spring in his step, smiling widely the whole way.

When Galinda and Elphaba entered the dorm building, Galinda grabbed Elphaba's arm and dragged her back to their room.

"What was that all about?" Galinda asked her sternly, after closing the door.

Elphaba sat on her bed and blinked up at her. "Why, I have absolutely no idea what you are talking about!" She smiled innocently.

Galinda rolled her eyes. "Right."

"What? Not incline to go to lunch with someone of Boq's social, for lack of a better word, stature?" She asked, completely amused.

Ama Clutch walked in just then. "So, what were you two doing out?"

"Oh, nothing! Just went for a stroll." Galinda answered fakely.

"Then I see you've picked up Miss Elphaba's habit of talking to plants. But it seems they're talking back now."

"Well, perhaps I'm getting better at sorcery" Galinda said waggling her fingers. She didn't want Ama Clutch to know that she was talking to Boq. It because of him, it was because he was a boy. Ama Clutch had a strict rule about her seeing boys. It was quite simple, really. She couldn't see boys unless Ama Clutch was there to chaperone.

Elphaba smiled at Galinda's response. Obviously she didn't want Ama Clutch to find out who she was talking to, but that was possibly the worst cover-up she had ever heard. And seen.

Ama Clutch sighed in frustration and walked to the window. Whatever the girls were up to, she was sure she didn't want to know. "Fine, if you're not going to tell me…"

Her voice trailed off as she stared out of the window. "Hmm…that's odd"

Galinda ignored her. "What's odd?" Elphaba asked giving Ama Clutch a strange look.

"Oh, I'm sure it's nothing. You two have sweet dreams. I'll see you in the morning." She walked out the door.

The next morning Elphaba was shaken awake by Galinda.

"What is it?" She asked, still half asleep.

"Ama Clutch isn't here!" Galinda cried. A look of intense worry crossed her face.

"What?" Elphaba asked shaking her self awake.

"She's gone. Ama Clutch is gone!" Galinda said, worry growing in her voice.

"I'm sure it's nothing." Elphaba scanned the room quickly, looking for a hint as to where the dear old guardian had disappeared to. Her gaze fell on a slip of parchment slipped under the door.

"What's that?" She asked. She walked to pick up the sheet of paper. She unfolded it and began to read outloud.

"Classes will be cancelled today due to an unfortunate accident involving one of our professors and chaperones. Please gather in the main lecture hall at three o' clock for a campus wide meeting. The is mandatory for all students. Signed, Madam Morrible, Headmistress…" Her voice trailed off as she quickly put the pieces of the puzzle together. She looked at Galinda, who seemed to be deep in thought.

"You don't think… Ama Clutch was in the accident, do you?" Galinda asked desperately. Elphaba gave Galinda a sympathetic look.

"I truly don't know. But from what I can deduce…" She didn't finish. Galindas eyes began to well with tears. "Come on, it probably isn't bad…"

There was a knock at the door. Elphaba opened it to find Ama Vimp, one of Ama Clutch's friends.

"Come on out. I'm to watch you two for the time being." She said curtly. "It's not good to stay cooped up like this anyhow." She looked questioningly at Elphaba.

"Is that all?" Elphaba asked coldy. Ama Vimp nodded. "Then we'll be out in ten minutes or so." She shut the door and turned to Galinda. "Come on. Get dressed." Galinda looked at her solemnly, fresh tears streaking her face, and moved to her closet. Instead of picking one of her normally frilly pink gowns, she chose a plain dress and didn't even bother putting on make up.

Elphaba grabbed one of her signature black frocks and quickly did up her hair. Soon enough, the two were headed out the door. When they got to the courtyard, they were greeted by a weeping Phanee, Milla, and Shenshen. They ran to Galinda and sat her down next to them. Elphaba, ever reasonable, turned to Ama Vimp.

"What happened here?" She asked seriously. Ama Vimp sighed.

"Seeing as you'll find out anyway, I'll tell you . Last night one of our professors had an accident. Doctor Dillamond. He seemed to have fallen on one of his magnifying lenses and severed an artery. Ama Clutch was the first to find him and fainted in shock. She's in the hospital wing now."

"He fell on a magnifying lens?" Elphaba asked, clearly not convinced, but sounding worried.

"That's what they're saying. He's dead, you know." Ama Vimp said, clearly wanting to stay away from the topic of death.

Elphaba sank beneath a tree. She felt like she would cry. No, she felt like she SHOULD cry. Alas, her eyes stayed dry. Anger built up inside of her. He didn't have an accident, she thought. He was killed. Probably by the same group of people that make all of the laws against the Animals. She felt heat rise to her cheeks. The 'Wonderful' Wizard's people. She shook her head. She couldn't let herself be to angry, or she'd lose control. She gazed off in to the distance. She squinted. Boq was running their way.

"What happened?" He asked Galinda. Galinda's quiet tears turned into sobs. Her entourage gather closer to her and mimicked her reaction. I guess I'm not getting an answer from her, Boq thought to himself. No lunch either. He a pang in his heart to see Galinda cry so uncontrollably. Even when she's crying she's beautiful, he thought. He suddenly snapped back into reality. He saw Elphaba sitting a distance away under a tree, just staring into space.

"Elphie! What's going on?" He asked urgently. She looked up with a look of sheer malice in her eyes.

"Somehow the bastards found out." She said in low voice. It scared him that such strong emotion was eminating from such a normally stolid person. "Doctor Dillamond is dead. They say he had an accident, but I think otherwise." She stopped.

A gurney was being wheeled by to a nearby truck. The men rolling the gurney stopped and walked over to the truck to open the doors. When they were not even three feet away, a gust of wind blew away the bloodstained cloth covering it's occupant.

There was Doctor Dillamond, his neck twisted in an odd fashion, ropes of drying blood adorning his wiry fur. There was an immaculate cut right across his throat and a look of terror in his dead yellow eyes. Ama Vimp jumped up and recovered the professor, the proceeded to yell and the medics for letting the 'poor, helpless young children' see such a sight.

Boq was speechless. Elphaba was grinding her teeth. Suddenly, she furrowed her brow and bolted. Boq was too dazed to see where she was going.

The next time he saw her was at the meeting that afternoon. He looked at her, expecting to see her with red, puffy eyes. He sat between her and Galinda, who was always either crying or on the verge of it. He put an arm around her. She didn't protest.

Morrible began her speech saying how terrible it was to have lost such a great professor. She seemed to spit the last word. Professor. Elphaba's anger flared. She did nothing though. Morrible continued by telling them about the Doctor's 'accident' and that a new professor would be taking his place. She made it clear that classes would resume the next day. So much for mourning, Elphaba thought to herself.

After the meeting, Boq met up with Elphaba. "What do you think really happened?" He asked her.

"I'm not sure, but if I were to guess, murder." She said with anger still in her voice.

"How do you figure? How do you know it WASN'T just an accident?" Boq asked, thinking that she was just exaggerating the situation.

"Do you think that I'm stupid?" She asked him. "I went to his office before anybody could rope it off, or put binding spells on it. It was no mistake. And did you SEE the cut on his throat this morning?"

Boq winced. He felt himself get nauseous. "Yeah… what about it?" He didn't really want to know, but it seemed like Elphaba knew what she was talking about.

"It was a clean cut. Not something that you would get on a broken piece of glass." She said pointedly "But something MEANT for cutting. A knife."

For the next few days, Boq tried to ignore the feeling that Elphaba was right. He tried to avoid talking about the accident at all costs. This was fairly easy because Elphaba got angry each time she spoke about it, and also avoided it. Not to mention she was busy preparing for her old Nanny to come to replace Ama Clutch until she was better. Naturally, her sister would be coming also.

Galinda had mellowed in the heat of all of the events and began to act less and less like what her posse like to see her as.

"Galinda! Do you want to go to a party this afternoon?" Phanee asked her in an overly perky voice. Galinda looked at her 'friend'.

"Sorry. I'm just not up to it." She said. "I've got a lot to think about"

"Oh, come ON! How long is THIS going to last?" Shenshen asked scoffing. Phanee and Milla nodded in agreement.

"Seriously! You've been like this for, like, days! We could be meeting up with hot Briscoe Hall boys!" Phanee said exasperated. Galinda looked at her so-called friend, shocked at her apathy. She furrowed her brow and gathered her things.

"Elphie was right." She said to them as she left. "I CAN do better that you girls"

All three of them stared after her.

"I can't believe we actually liked her!" Milla said as Galinda walked away.

For the first time, she left them to go see Elphaba. She realized that Elphaba was the best friend she ever had, and didn't even realize it. Sure she could be callous and blunt, but at least she didn't judge people unfairly.

She found her roommate rearranging the furniture in their dorm.

"What are you doing?" Galinda asked, confused.

"Rearranging. Oh! I forgot to tell you … my old Nanny is coming to look after us until Ama Clutch recovers." She said while attempting to move a large bureau. "My little sister is coming to. She has special needs."

She paused for a moment. "Weren't you with your friends?" She said 'friends with disgust.

"I was… I ditched them" Galinda said. "You have a sister?"

"Good going" Elphaba said impressed. "Didn't I tell you? Nessarose. You'll meet her in a few days."

"What's she like?"

"Normal colored." Elphaba said shortly.

"Well, I ought to know more than that if she's coming to stay." Galinda pointed out.

"Fine… well… she's crippled. Her legs were terribly deformed at birth, so she's confined to a wheelchair. She spoiled and my father's favorite. She's a devout Unionist, like my father, and she has a taste for pretty things."

Galinda stared at her, taking in the information. "She's religious? I never would've expected that seeing how you're atheist."

"Well, she wasn't used by her father to demonstrate religious points."

"Why do you say that she's your father's favorite?"

"Because she's hard not to like. Not to mention she's not green and she's religious."

Galinda shrugged. "Did you hear that we're getting a new student? I hear he's a Winkie."

From the Vinkus? Perhaps he would know more about Kumbrica, Elphaba pondered. "Don't call them Winkies. It's a derogatory term" She said, not quite paying attention. "I'm going to bed." She said to Galinda.

Galinda watched sleepily as her roommate sat on her bed and pulled an old book out of under her pillow. She didn't think anything of it. She'd had a long day. She was asleep before she hit the pillow.

Elphaba stared intently at the cover of the old book. She had often read the stories in it. All about Kumbrica, Lurline, and the emergence of evil. She flipped through the familiar brown pages and stopped when she came to an illustration. She had never noticed this before. She felt her heart leap for a moment. She traced a green finger over the drawing of a blue diamond, one of the many objects associated with Kumbrica. She recalled her favorite tale of Kumbrica. It was of when Kumbrica had met a stranger who had befriended her, even after her declared feud with thelegendary 'vizier'. This man, she couldn't recall his name, had given her an necklace with a teardrop shaped blue diamond hanging from it. It was said that Kumbrica had loved this man, and that the necklace was a parting gift when she was captured that hung just over her heart, even as she was killed.

Elphaba snapped out of her daydream. She looked at the picture again quickly and put the book back under her pillow. She imagined for a moment a man that loved her for who she was. She shook her head. Don't even think about it, she chided herself, wishing only wounds the heart. She fell heavily onto her bed and stared at her ceiling. Tomorrow is a new day, she told herself. She fell asleep, dreaming.

* * *

**Please don'thurt me for being boring and sticking to the book too much! just gimme suggestions, and i'll take em!(most likely)**


	4. Happy

still don't own wicked, obviously... or i wouldn't be here. And the story progresses...

* * *

The new life sciences teacher was Dr. Nikidik. He would often drone on about topics irrelevant to the class, then expect everyone to ace a pop quiz the next day. When he was on topic, he would start out each sentence loud, then begin to slur his words until they were an indistinguishable mumble. Their last few lessons, from what she could tell, were about Animals and animals.

After a week and a half of students zoning out of his 'lectures', Dr. Nikidik decided to conduct an educational experiment.

"Class! If you would direct yourattentiontothe…mumblemumble" He started. "We will be using arareandvaluablepotionto…mumblemumblemumble"

Boq and Elphaba exchanged glances. "What did he just say?" Boq asked with a confused look.

"You're asking me?"

They looked to the front of the room. There, Dr. Nikidik was uncorking a small vial of a pearly colored potion. Vapors rose from the vial and made their way to a portrait of one of Shiz's old life sciences teachers.

"I think that's Extract of Biological Intention." Elphaba whispered to Boq. "The person in the portrait should take on living traits, like seeing, hearing, thinking, and remembering, what the person saw when he was alive."

The entire class' attention was fixed on the slowly rising, iridescent plumes. Suddenly a side door opened, revealing a confused boy. The air currents shifted, causing the vapors not to go to the portrait, but some decorative antlers beside it.

Dr. Nikidik glared at the boy. "Look what you've done now!" The antlers began to thrash, dismounting themselves from the wall. They dropped slightly and began floating toward Dr. Nikidik. He gave the antlers a look and jabbed his thumb at the boy. The boy's eyes widened as the antlers sped towards him, attacking him. Some of the class laughed, while others gasped. Two students from the crowd ran to the front and began wrestling with the antlers. The boy grabbed his things and ran for the door.

"That'll teach you not to be late!" Dr. Nikidik shouted after him. The two boys who were wrestling with the antlers stopped when the antlers suddenly became inanimate once more. They followed the now boy out.

Dr Nikidik looked to his class. "There's no way I'mearningyourattention…mumblemumble. Class dismissed!" He said waving his hands.

"Well, that was an interesting class." Elphaba observed out loud.

"Yeah. I feel bad for the new kid. Good thing Crope and Tibbett kept those antlers from killing him." Boq said, laughing.

"So those were the infamous Crope and Tibbett."

"Yeah. We're all having lunch later. Perhaps you and Galinda would like to come?"

"I'll ask Galinda if she wants to come. I'll go though. As long as Avaric's not there." Elphaba replied. She made a disgusted face when she mentioned Avaric. Avaric was a pretentious git who thrived on making others miserable. Especially if they happened to be a green girl with black hair.

"Well, meet us at the commons if you decide to come."

Elphaba found Galinda and dragged her to lunch. She knew Avaric would invite himself to lunch, and she wasn't going to deal with him without dragging someone along with her. When they reached the commons, they looked around for the boys. Elphaba sat down when she was sure that they weren't there yet. She watched the door as Galinda went to the bathroom to redo her make-up.

Just then, a boy she didn't know walked through a far door. She recognized him as the boy who was attacked by the antlers. He looked around, obviously lost. He caught her gaze and they stared at each other for a good ten seconds. He began to walk toward her. As he came closer, Elphaba noticed a strange pattern on his skin. She squinted. Blue diamonds sparkled across his hands and the part of his chest that she could see. Her heart leapt at the sight. They're beautiful… She thought to herself. She realized what she was thinking and felt the hear rise in her cheeks. Don't even think about it, she scolded herself.

"Excuse me." The boy said to her. "Uh…hi. I'm Fiyero Tiggular." He seemed embarrassed. Elphaba was still staring.

"Oh! Sorry. I'm Elphaba." She said hurriedly. "Elphaba Thropp. Can I help you?"

"Umm.." He thought for a moment. "Yeah… I'm looking for—what were their names—Crope, Tibbett, and…uhh"

"Boq?" She offered.

"Yeah! How'd you know?" He asked, confused.

"I'm meeting them too, along with my roommate. She should be here in a few moments"

Right on cue, Galinda walked up beside Elphaba. "Who's this?" She asked.

The boy offered his hand. "Fiyero Tiggular. Pleasure to meet you –"

"Galinda." She said importantly. " Of the Adruennas."

"Pleasure to meet you Galinda" He took her hand and shook it. Elphaba's gaze fell to the diamonds again. They reminded her of her favorite story about Kumbrica. She smiled.

"What?" Fiyero asked looking at her. She flinched slightly.

"Oh—uh. Nothing." She said quickly. " I like your diamonds. They're nice."

"Why thank you" Fiyero said back to her. "I like your skin. It's pretty."

Galinda stared at him. That was new, she thought. She couldn't ever recall anyone complimenting Elphaba on her skin, let alone a complete stranger. Elphaba raised an eyebrow at him. How could anyone think that green skin was pretty? He was probably just humoring her.

Boq, Crope and Tibbett walked into the commons and gathered around the small group.

"Crope, Tibbett, these are Elphaba and Galinda," He said motioning to them. "Elphaba, Galinda, these are Crope and Tibbett."

"I see that you've already met our guest of honor" said Crope.

"Boq, Fiyero. Fiyero, Boq." Said Tibbet.

"Now that we're finished with the salutations—" Started Tibbett,

"What bar are we going to?" Finished Crope. Elphaba, Galinda, and Fiyero stared at them. Boq leaned over and whispered to them.

"Don't worry, you'll get used to them."

"We heard that!" The pair of boys said together. "Don't you listen to a word our little friend says. The lack of sex and alcohol has gotten to his brain." Tibbett said, bringing Boq into a gentle headlock, knocking on his skull.

"Yeah?" Boq said humoring them. "Shut up! It's not like you guys could say anything."

"That's what you think" Crope said, giving him a mischievous look.

"Hello! Mixed company!" Galinda said, catching their attention.

"Well, Boq, looks like here's your chance to catch up with us" Tibbett said jokingly.

"That's enough for me" Elphaba said standing up. Galinda followed her lead huffily.

"Wait! You're not going to leave me with these guys, are you?" Fiyero asked them.

"They're hardly guys" Elphaba said sarcastically.

"Hey!"

"Anyhow, perhaps if you stay, these boys will learn some class" Elphaba said walking away.

"Or we'll corrupt his virgin mind and he'll be one of us" Tibbett responded. "There Crope. We've found a new project. Operation Corrupt New Boy." He smiled maliciously at Fiyero and rubbed his hands together for effect. Fiyero's eyes widened and he looked around for the girls. He saw them leave through the door.

"WAIT UP!" He called as he ran after them. Boq looked at Crope and Tibbett, amused.

"Looks as if you've scared off another one." He said

"All in a days work" Responded Crope, satisfied.

"They don't know you're actors you know."

"That's what makes it all the more entertaining." Tibbett said. "We need to practice on SOMEONE" He smiled.

"So, off to the bar then?" Boq asked. Crope and Tibbett looked at each other and laughed.

"We didn't get rid of them for no reason, Oh Clueless one." Crope said to him.

"I didn't mean to scare off our Winkie friend, but we're going where all eligible bachelors love to go. We'll be going on an… adventure of sorts." Tibbett continued. "The Philosophy Club."

Fiyero looked around when he got outside. He caught a glimpse of black skirts sweeping around a corner. He ran to follow them. Perhaps too fast, for when he turned the corner, he ran straight into Elphaba at full speed. The two of them toppled, Fiyero landing awkwardly on top of Elphaba.

"Get OFF!" Elphaba shrieked after a moment. Fiyero was still dazed from the fall and had not realized his position.

"Are you deaf? GET OFF!"

Fiyero jolted back into reality.

"Oh God! Sorry!" He said as he quickly picked himself up. He offered his hand to help her up. Elphaba ignored it and stood up. She brushed herself off hastily.

"Are you okay?" Fiyero asked her. She looked at him, scrutinizing.

"Fine" She said laconically. She shifted uncomfortably.

"Where's Glinda?" He asked her.

She shrugged. "Going back to the dorms, most likely."

"So, you decided to leave the motley crew?" She asked, amused.

"Yeah…" He said. "I happen to be fairly attached to my sanity."

Elphaba laughed, but only for a moment. Fiyero looked at her curiously. Hearing her laugh made him feel suddenly at peace. He looked to her eyes. They were a dark brown. Her green skin seemed to glow with an unknown energy. Her hair was black as the darkest night. It was pulled into a long braid that rested on her shoulder. He had a sudden urge to touch it, or pull it out of the confining braid. He looked back at her eyes. She was staring at him questioningly.

"Sorry." He said quietly.

"Don't be. I'm used to it." She said nonchalantly. In reality, she was flattered to have him look at her. She knew that it was probably because she was green, and it was weird, but she secretly enjoyed it. Her gaze fell to his neckline, where a smattering of diamonds showed above his collar. They sparkled in the sunlight. She tore her gaze away quickly before Fiyero noticed she was staring. Fiyero cleared his throat.

"So…uhh—How did you're skin become—uh…"

She looked at him. She had been expecting this question. "Green? I was born like this." She replied.

"I like it." He said truthfully.

"And you?" She asked him.

"What?"

She pointed to the diamonds. "Oh. Same. I barely even notice anymore." He told her. "A lot of people from the Vinkus are born with different patterns on their skin. Different colors, shapes… everything. Most people outside of the Vinkus find it…disturbing."

"Most people isn't everyone" Elphaba said absentmindedly. Fiyero looked at her curiously.

"I mean most people are ignorant. What do 'most people' know about anything? 'Most people' are idiots that judge everyone on appearance." She said in an attempt to save herself. But she truly felt this.

"I agree. Appearances aren't everything, are they?" Fiyero looked around. "Where are we?"

Elphaba stopped. She didn't realize that they'd been walking. They were in the middle of the campus, a park-like area where a large carillon stood.

"Back on campus." She said. How did they get here? She asked herself. The carillon struck six o' clock. "You'd best be going. You'll miss curfew." She said reluctantly. She liked talking to him.

"Yeah… Well, it was nice talking to you. We should do this again sometime." He began to walk away. He stopped for a moment and waved goodbye. Elphaba smiled and waved back. He looked kind of like he had no control over his muscles when he waved. It reminded her of a scarecrow. A good-looking scarecrow, she thought to herself. She walked back to Crage Hall, where she found her roommate sleeping, as she had suspected. She didn't understand how the girl could sleep so much. She looked at a poster hung over her roommate's bed. "Everyone needs their beauty sleep!" it proclaimed. She laughed. There's Galinda for you, she thought before she changed for bed. I wonder where Boq went with those two idiots, she wondered before she went to sleep. The question left her thoughts quickly as she drifted into sweet dreams. She saw herself in a dark room. A blue diamond teardrop seemed to illuminate her face, revealing a secret smile. The diamond hung from a simple chain. For once, she looked happy.

* * *

suggestions, questions, comments? you know what to do.


	5. Death and Magic

For any of you who saw the message from before, false alarm. Apparently my parents were totally and completely overreacting when they told me what was going on. My sister is fine, but pissed off for reasons I dare not speak of.

So, here comes dundundun…Chapter 5, the longest chapter written so far.

* * *

The next morning, Elphaba and Galinda were summoned by Madame Morrible. Ama Clutch, who had been in the hospital for about a few weeks already, was fading away. Madame Morrible wouldn't let them visit her because 'it would be too terrible for girls this age to see a loved one in such a state'. Elphaba thought it was complete bullshit. She had a theory about who, or what rather, had murdered Doctor Dillamond. She believed that it was Grommetik, Madame Morribles ticktock 'assistant'. Madame Morrible had a motive. She didn't like the Animals to begin with. Ever since she became the Headmistress, the Animal professors, and even groundskeepers, were slowly disappearing. They were said to have been offered jobs elsewhere, or resigned suddenly. Doctor Dillamond seemed to be the last one there.

Nanny and Nessarose accompanied the roomies to the Hospital Wing, where they met Morrible. They entered Ama Clutch's room. Galinda rushed over to her side.

"You must know, that the night Dr. Dillamond was murdered, Ama Clutch found him. It is my professional opinion that she relapsed into her ailment from shock." Madam Morrible said in a superior tone.

Elphaba turned on her. "Professional opinion? Who died and made you doctor?"

"Elphaba!" said Nessarose, astonished. Nanny glared.

"Stop it!" Galinda sobbed. "This is no time to bicker. This is all my fault!"

Ama Clutch looked around aimlessly. "Why hello there!"

"Ama Clutch?" Galinda said hopefully. "It's me! Galinda! I'm sorr—"

Ama Clutch ignored her a picked up a spork. "What's you're name, duckie?" She paused for a moment, as if waiting for an answer from the utensil. "Why that's a nice name, Glinda. Pleased to meet you. Now what brings you here to Gillikin?" She paused again. "Oh, yes… this is a nice place to vacation…"

Galinda couldn't take it anymore. She began sobbing uncontrollably. Elphaba looked at Madame Morrible.

"Do you mind? We're trying to say goodbye here."

"I will stay with you to help you through this difficult moment." Morrible said determinedly. She put her hands on her hips, daring somebody to make her leave.

Elphaba and Nanny stood up simultaneously, each taking one of Morrible's arms and forcing her out the door.

"That's very kind of you, but I'll take it from here" Nanny said angrily and she locked the door from the inside.

They turned back to Ama Clutch. She had stopped conversing with the spork and sat there seemingly surveying the scene around her. Galinda took her hands.

"Hang on, Ama. I'm not going to let you die like this." She said, getting control over her tears. She began chanting. Elphaba watched intently. The words sounded almost lyrical. She took hold of Galinda's shoulder, closed her eyes and began chanting along with her. She had no idea what she was saying, or what it would do, but she trusted Galinda to make it work.

Nessarose and Nanny stood in complete silence, stunned at the scene before them. Ama Clutch began to thrash about wildly. Nessa looked like she was on the verge of tears and suddenly began shrieking that magic was unholy and evil. Ama Clutch stopped thrashing and Elphaba and Galinda ended the chant.

"What did you do?" Elphaba asked Galinda, staring nervously at the unmoving nurse.

"I think you mean what did we do, and it was a Lucidity spell." Galinda answered distantly.

Elphaba kept staring at Ama Clutch. We? She asked her self. I can't do magic.

Suddenly, Ama Clutch sat straight up and gasped for air. Everyone jumped in surprise.

"Ama Clutch!" Galinda cried happily. Ama Clutch looked at her.

"So, I'm still alive then. Good, because there are some things I have to say before the Wind comes." She said clearly and urgently.

"Ama Clutch this is all my fault!" Galinda shrieked.

"Shut up, Galinda. Let the woman talk!" Elphaba snapped. She nodded her head for Ama Clutch to continue.

"That night when Doctor Dillamond died" She began hastily. "It wasn't an –" Her voice seemed to cut off. She struggled to continue. "It—wasn't –accident" She strained. Her face began to turn red. " Morrible—ticktock—Animals—gone!" She was on the verge of purple now, sweat pouring down her face. "Don't—get—pulled—by—the—Wind" She gasped. She looked to Galinda, eyes wide. "Not—your fault—Glinda! Good—bye" With that, she collapsed on the bed, dead.

Galinda went into hysterics. Elphaba awkwardly put an arm around her, in an attempt to comfort her. Nanny let them out of the room where Morrible was waiting for them.

"She's gone." Nanny said.

Morrible nodded. "I would like to see Nessarose, Elphaba and Galinda in my office at four."

Nanny waved her comment away and continued to lead the three girls down out of the hospital. They went straight to the dorm room and each went to mourn in their own way. Galinda went right to her bed and cried into her pillow. Elphaba went to her's as well and took out a book, pretending to read it, looking out the window once in a while. Nessarose, who didn't know Ama Clutch very well, decided that saying a few prayers would be appropriate. Nanny sat in a chair and began to mend clothing.

This continued until they had to go meet the Headmistress. Everybody was silent as they made their way to the main building. Except for Nanny. She tried to lighten the mood by talking about the weather. It was rather ironic really. A beautiful sunny day, one of the most beautiful of the season, contrasted the gloomy air the girls had about them. When they entered the building, Elphaba whispered to Galinda, Nessa, and Nanny.

"Don't tell Horrible Morrible about what Ama Clutch said about the murder"

The three nodded in agreement. It would have been foolish to reveal that they knew such information to one of the most powerful sorceresses in Oz. After a moment, Nanny knocked on a large wooden door adorning a plaque: Madame Elda Morrible, Headmistress. Almost immediately Grommetik opened the door. Morrible was sitting at her desk. She looked up at them expectantly.

"Welcome to my office. Now, Nanny, if you would excuse us for a few moments."

"But Nessa—"

"I'm quite sure that her sister can take care of her" Morrible said, cutting her off. She looked at Nanny threateningly. Nanny looked at Morrible as if she were about to attack her, but skulked out of the room, fussing about how a hostess is supposed to act. Once she was gone, Grommetik followed her out and shut the door.

"Now, girls. I would like to start off by saying how terribly I feel about your loss." She said with mock sympathy. "But, I wonder… in her ravings, did she say anything about the death of our dearly departed Goat Professor?" She spat the words as if they burnt her tongue.

Elphaba answered. "No. She was raving to the end" She said. Her voice was steady, but her eyes seemed to shoot daggers and the Head.

"As I figured." Morrible said, bored. "After seeing a sight like what she saw, it would only be natural to recess to her prior madness."

Galinda couldn't take it anymore. She didn't cry though. "My Ama Clutch never had a previous ailment of any sort." She said thickly. "I made the entire thing up. She didn't even know what I did."

Elphaba thought that she saw Morrible's guard break. She was about to smile at Galinda's thinking, but didn't have the chance.

"Well then Miss Galinda, it seems that your power in sorcery is only being proved by this act of prophecy, or perhaps, spell casting."

"It's Glinda now." She said. Elphaba and Nessarose looked at her. She gave them an I'll-explain-later look.

Morrible just shrugged it off. "Well then, moving onward. I didn't gather you three here today to express sympathy for your maid's death. But first, I feel obligated to warn you, all three of you are now under a binding oath. There's no turning back now. Few people are strong enough to break it." She looked at Elphaba. "Which brings to my next point. All three of you have a special strength. A power, if you will. These powers are vital in the future of Oz, which is why our wonderful Wizard has his eye on you three.

"Obviously, he can't be everywhere at once, so he requires your assistance in keeping Oz in line. You three… for lack of a better word, Adepts, hold the key. Galinda, of the North, Gillikin. Elphaba, the Thropp Third Descending of Munchkinland. And Nessa" She said with a kind of cruel sympathy. "Of the South, Quadling Country.

"Three intelligent, powerful girls watching over three parts of Oz for the Wizard. An honor for anybody."

Elphaba felt like she was about to explode with anger and frustration. The 'wonderful' Wizard was slowly deteriorating the once united Oz. She would rather die than help him. All of a sudden, a purplish fire seemed to emanate from Elphaba's body. It shot around the room, destroying things. All feelings of anger became fear. Not of Morrible, but of herself. The purple fire disappeared as suddenly and it had come. Everybody stared at her. Galinda was shocked. Nessarose, on the other hand, nearly fainted.

Madame Morrible sighed. "Now, Elphaba, was that necessary? You've made a mess. You've once again proved your strong individuality and courage. Another reason you are so valuable, and quite possibly dangerous, to the Wizard." She doesn't know the half of it, thought Elphaba, her anger returning.

Madame Morrible continued. "Now, as for you Nessa, a girl who has been deprived of independence and glory since birth, you will have power. You have the opportunity to rule. You'll be above so many people. Can you tell anyone, honestly, that this isn't something that you want?" She paused for a moment, as if waiting for an answer. Nessa was shaking with fear. She didn't like the Headmistress's tone. She admitted that power did sound appealing, but her humble religious nature grounded her. She was happy with her life now.

"Speechless." Madame Morrible said pointedly. "As I thought she might be." She turned to face Galinda—no Glinda.

"And now for Miss Gali—oh, it's Glinda now, isn't it?" A cold feeling shot down Glinda's spine when Morrible looked at her. A mixture of fear and resentment marked her face clearly.

"You," Horrible Morrible started "already seem to have a grasp for leadership and popularity. As long as you do what you do best in the interest of the Wizard, you can just bask in that limelight. People will celebrate you, praise you, worship you even." She stopped to look at Glinda's expression. It surprisingly hadn't changed. She had expected an odd light of girlish excitement to fill her eyes, but it didn't come. She went on anyway.

"With you three watching over the main provinces of Oz, we will surely have a safer, united place to live. The Wizard is sure of it. I know that these ideas are probably filling your little heads to quickly, so I'll let you think it over. You will choose your paths from there. Though it might prove… unfortunate if you choose a different course." She said, stressing the word 'unfortunate'. Was that a threat? Elphaba asked herself. She looked over at Nessa and Glinda, who seemed to be thinking the same thing.

"And a warning. Especially to you, Miss Elphaba. The binding spell keeps you from speaking about this conversation, even within yourselves. The funeral will be next Saturday for Ama Clutch, and you will be excused from classes, if you'd like, for the next few days to… pay your respects. You are dismissed."

A stuffy feeling seemed to lift from the room as she said the last words. Perhaps it was the binding spell? In any case, the three girls left silently. Before shutting the door behind her, Elphaba shot Madame Morrible a look and flicked her off. Childish, but appropriate, she said to herself.

They met Nanny outside of the building. She had been pacing back and forth. When she saw them, she ran towards them.

"How's my Nessa? What did that old Carp say to you? Are you all in good health?"

Elphaba answered instantly. "Nessa's fine. Morrible told us that the funeral's Saturday, and we're all perfectly healthy." Her hand went to her mouth. Where did that come from? She was going to tell Nanny that Morrible was threatening them and that Nessa was probably emotionally scarred for life. She looked at the other two girls, confused.

"We're not fine" Glinda tried. The words came out differently. She found herself saying "Yes, everything's fine here" Nessa didn't even try. She figured out what was going on. She just began to cry silent tears.

"Let's go home." Elphaba suggested. She would try to figure this out then. Not in public with everybody staring at her. When they arrived in the dorm, Glinda stopped Elphaba.

"What was with the fire?" She asked, referring back to what happened in Morrible's office.

"It happens sometimes. When I get really angry, or sad. I usually have control over it though" She said, not wanting to talk about it.

"That's powerful magic" Glinda said in awe. "You should be taking sorcery."

Elphaba shrugged. That was the last thing she wanted to do. Being green was threatening enough for most people. Magic would just scare them more.

"So, _Glinda_? Why the name change?"

"Doctor Dillamond called me Glinda, and Ama Clutch called me Glinda before she… passed on." She said quietly. "I guess I just wanted to remember them somhow. It's stupid isn't it?"

Elphaba looked at her curiously. It was actually an interesting concept. Changing her name would remember them forever, unlike any prayer or something like that. "No." She said. "It's very…I don't know… It's nice."

Nessa had gone to her room. Probably to pray again. Glinda was lying on her bed, staring at the ceiling, no doubt vainly blaming herself for everything that had happened.

"I'm going for a walk" Elphaba announced. She pulled the old book from under her pillow and walked out the door. She walked down a beaten dirt path to a tight cluster of trees. She walked off of the path and made her way through the dark woods. Hmm… she thought. Maybe I should come here more often to think. It's quiet.

She stopped under a large willow tree and sat down. She closed her eyes and concentrated. She looked deep inside herself, trying to locate Morrible's spell inside her. She knew it was there. She could feel it, like a void in her mind. Soon she was in a deep trance. She saw the cursed magic that ran through her veins. Purple fire. She looked for a disturbance. No, she felt for it. In the back of her mind, she could see a disgusting, brown colored magic that wrapped itself around her mind. She thought for a moment. How could she get the foreign magic out of her? Could she break it with her own magic? It she broke the spell on her, would she break the one on the others? She furrowed her brow concentrating more. She didn't know how to use spells, but she knew how to direct her magic. It was a skill that she learned when she was young, so that she wouldn't reveal her other little quirk. She breathed in deep. She located the foreign magic again. Slowly, she gathered her own magic into a ball in her head. When she thought she had enough, she forced it at the brown mass, trying to break it apart. She tried again and again. Sweat was pouring down her face. With a final attempt, she screamed, shoving her magic into the mass as hard as she could. She fainted.

Down the beaten path, Fiyero heard a scream. It was a girl. He ran towards the sound and into a small stretch of woods. There, he saw a black clothed mass through the hanging tendrils of a towering willow tree. He pushed his way through the vine-like branches and knelt beside the person. He pulled her up into a sitting position. Black hair covered the face of the girl. He looked around to see if an attacker was anywhere before pushing the long hair aside. He saw green skin, glistening with sweat. She was breathing.

"Elphaba! Are you okay?" He called to her, hoping for a response. None came. He looked at her face. The usually determined and serious look was gone. He didn't see the Elphaba he knew. He saw a helpless young girl. It scared him and exhilarated him. He wanted to keep looking at her, but his serious side took over. He picked her up gently. She was light, he noticed. Good thing. I'll be able to move faster.

He carried her quickly out of the clearing and onto the path toward the campus. It was getting dark. Where do I take her? Morrible? No… I don't like her. The hospital? No… Morrible will show up. He decided to take her to her dorm and let their caretaker decide. He remembered that she lived with Galinda. Boq was always going on about her, how beautiful she was, how nice she was, and everything else. Including where she lived. Boq's stalker-like tendancies finally come to some use. He turned into Crage Hall and ran to their dorm. He rearranged Elphaba to knock on the door. Moments later, Glinda answered. She saw Elphaba and went crazy.

"What happened? Did you do this to her? Where was she?" Glinda cried. Fiyero pushed past her as gently as he could.

"Which bed is hers?" He asked ignoring her questions for the time being. Glinda pointed and ran to go get Nanny. Fiyero set her down carefully and looked at her. She looked so fragile, like she would break if anyone touched her. He tenderly brushed the hair out her her face.

Nanny ran into the room, with Nessa and Glinda following her. She pushed Fiyero out of the way.

"Galinda?"

"Glinda!"

"Whoever!" Nanny yelled. "Just get some water on a cloth." Nessa stared at her as if she were insane.

"Nanny! You know she has an intolerance! It hurts her!"

Fiyero stared at them, more confused by the second.

"I know perfectly well! The sensation may bring her back though." She looked at Fiyero. "What happened to her?"

"I—I don't know. I heard her scream and ran over." He said, dazed. "She was in the woods."

Nanny looked at his suspicious. "So you had nothing to do with this?"

"NO! Of course not! Elphaba's my…" He thought for a moment. Where they friends yet? After all, they'd only met once. "Friend." He finished. He wanted to be her friend. He liked her.

"Very well." Nanny took the damp cloth from Glinda, who had just come back into the room. She pressed the cloth gently on Elphaba's forehead. Elphaba flinched. She furrowed her eyebrows and tried to swat the cloth away. She opened her eyes. Nanny took the cloth away.

"What just happened?" She demanded, regaining her serious looks. Her head ached.

"We were hoping you could tell us that." Nanny said with her hands on her hips. "He—" She said motioning to Fiyero "Said you were in the woods and you screamed, and he found you out cold."

She looked off distantly, taking in the information. Slowly, memories were coming back to her.

"The spell!" She said, almost excitedly. "Morrible's spell!"

"Wait…" Glinda interrupted. "How did you say that?"

"I broke it!" She said completely satisfied.

"Ours too?" Nessa asked, light filling her eyes. Elphaba shrugged.

"Try it." Fiyero was even more confused, if that was possible. Nanny joined him in his confusion.

"Morrible is an evil prick who threatens young girls into choosing their futures." Glinda said happily.

Nessa smiled. Normally she would scold people for disrespecting their elders, but she was slowly growing out of her church mouse/ preacher tendancies.

"Would anyone mind telling us what's going on?" Nanny intruded, clearly annoyed that the girls knew something she didn't.

Elphaba answered. "Oh, it's nothing. Just a silencing spell from Morrible that I broke."

Nanny rolled her eyes. "Well, that explains everything, doesn't it? Anyway, I believe you owe this young man a thank you."

She looked at Fiyero. Her heart stopped for a moment and she was lost for words. Her mouth was half open, like she was about to say something. It was like she was frozen.

"It's alright. Really." Fiyero said looking at Nanny. He glanced at Elphaba, who was still frozen. "I'd better go. You should get some rest."

Elphaba nodded, unable to find any words. She thought about how stupid she looked with her mouth hanging open like that.

He turned back to Nanny. "Do you mind if I come by tomorrow and see how she's doing?"

Nanny nodded and waved him away. He left quietly, stealing another glance at Elphaba, who was protesting against Nanny checking her all over to see if she was hurt. He smiled for a moment and began walking to his dorm.

Glinda, back in the room, sat on her bed thinking. She noticed Elphaba's strange…un-Elphaba reaction to Fiyero. Ideas bubbled beneath her blonde hair, almost forcing out the day's terrible events. She looked over at Elphaba and smiled a secret smile. It was time to play Glinda's favorite game:

Matchmaker.

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I would just like to say that i LOVE my reviewers. You're awesome. Yeah, i don't think i'm going to bother saying it now. you know the drill. 


	6. A Bit Confused

sorry i haven't updated... there are plenty of reasons why, just nothing you all would care about. this MIGHT be a bit badly written, considering my attention span is about this (.) long. don't kill me!

oh, yeah... haven't reminded people that i still don't ownWicked in a while, have i? as if you couldn't tell...

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"Boq" Fiyero asked his stout friend. "What do you think of Elphaba?" 

Boq looked at him quizzically. "Well, she's…different." Boq replied. "Not that you couldn't tell. She's full of contradictions, that girl. Impulsive and hesitant, the best friend you'll ever have and the worst friend you'll ever get, stolid and passionate, strong and weak, normal and abnormal, alert and oblivious, ugly and…"

"Beautiful." Fiyero finished.

Boq smirked. "Well, if that's the way you like 'em, sure. Why? Do you like her or something" He joked.

Fiyero shrugged. Boq's eyes widened and his mouth fell open. "Holy shit… you like her." Suddenly he began laughing hysterically. "You like Elphaba! Wait 'til I tell her that! She'll flip!"

"NO!" Fiyero shouted. Boq froze, shocked at the sudden outburst. "Okay, okay. I won't tell her, but I think that you should. It might be good for both of you."

"Maybe" Fiyero said absentmindedly. Boq looked at him, amused. This new situation was a perfect opportunity for him to spend time with Galinda (well, Glinda). If he knew her as well as he thought he did, she would be more than happy to play matchmaker. But how were they going to get Elphaba to cooperate?

Back at Crage Hall, Glinda waited patiently for Nanny and Nessa to lose interest in Elphaba. Almost an hour ago, she was unconscious being carried in by Fiyero. This was the most attention that Elphaba had gotten all year from Nanny…or anybody now that she thought about it. Finally Nanny was satisfied that Elphaba was okay, and wheeled Nessa out of the room.

"You sleep now, Fabala." Nanny commanded as she left the room. She shut the door behind her. Elphaba rolled her eyes.

"So…" Glinda started. "What do you think of the new boy?"

"What do you mean?" Elphaba asked.

"What do you think of him? Is he nice? Conceited?"

"Well, he's nice. I don't really know too much about him. I've only ever spoken to him once or twice."

"Do you think he's handsome?"

Elphaba gave her roommate a look. "Where are these coming from?"

"Just curious. So?"

"I suppose he is, but looks aren't everything. For all I know, he could be some insane mass murderer or rapist or something. I highly doubt it, but it's possible."

Glinda rolled her eyes. Elphaba seemed to have mastered the art of evading questions.

"Whatever." Glinda said dismissively. She wasn't going to get anything out of this girl. She was far too stubborn. "You should thank him for bringing you back though. He seemed a little bummed that you didn't earlier."

"I guess." Elphaba said as she turned off the light. "I'm going to go to sleep now, if you don't mind. I drained myself breaking that spell."

Glinda sighed and retreated to her own bed. Tomorrow, she would have a plan to get Elphaba to admit that she liked Fiyero.

The next day, Glinda didn't go to class. Elphaba, ignoring Morrible's 'kind' offer, went to every one of them. While she was gone, Glinda drew up some plans to get her with Fiyero. So far, the only plan she had was to lock the two in a closet together for a few hours, and that didn't seem like a good idea. She decided to take a break from her labors to get some lunch. There, she saw Boq and ideas began rushing through he mind. He was Fiyero's friend and would probably do anything to help her, considering that he'd been practically stalking her for the past month. She walked quickly over to his table.

"Glinda." Boq said, surprised. "Hi."

"Boq, I need your help."

"Anything! But, I have a favor to ask you. Uhh… can we talk in private somewhere?" He asked, looking around quickly. Glinda looked unsure, but agreed. The two walked outside to a secluded corner.

"Okay, you can't tell anyone," Boq began "But Fiyero likes Elphaba." Glinda squealed with delight.

"Elphie likes him too!" She said jumping up and down. Boq raised both eyebrows in surprise.

"She told you that?"

"Well…no… but I can tell! I'm sure of it!" She smiled brightly.

"Then are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Boq asked with a mischievous grin. Glinda only grinned in return.

"So…" Boq said to Glinda. They were outside of a restaurant. "There's no way that you're going to get Elphie to admit anything, is there?" Glinda shook her head.

"The only way you can get anything out of that girl is if you trick her. And even then it's hard." She said disappointedly. "She's too… clever."

"Well then… we have to find someway to trick her without her knowing it. Probably by using something she doesn't understand…"

Glinda put her head in her arms. "It's no use. She's too smart for us." She said in a muffled voice.

"You're right… it would take a miracle for us to pull anything off." Boq said, hanging his head.

Suddenly Glinda sat up straight. "Maybe not a miracle, but I think magic might do."

Boq looked at her questioningly. "What are you going to do? Cast a spell on her?"

"No… she can cast it on herself. I just have to give her the spell…oh, this is good." Glinda said, not bothering to explain. "Meet me in the courtyard tomorrow for lunch and bring Fiyero. I've got work to do." She said, standing up to leave.

"What…?" Boq started to ask.

"You'll see tomorrow. Just do what I say! We might just pull this off!" She kissed him quickly on the cheek before dashing away.

"Sure" Boq said, dazed "Whatever you say"

Glinda spent the rest of the day reading through her spell book and taking notes. When Elphaba returned, she was still at her desk.

"Finally decided to apply yourself?" She asked sarcastically.

"Actually, I've decided to help you out for once" Glinda responded. She had her plan all figured out.

Elphaba raised her eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

"Well, Elphie, you've been tutoring me all semester and I wasn't exactly too nice to you at the beginning of the term, so I'd like to make it up to you."

"Keep talking."

"I'm going to tutor you in magic."

"No."

Glinda wasn't expecting this. "What? Why?"

"As if I don't scare people enough by being green. Magic will just scare more people away! Why do you think I didn't take sorcery to BEGIN with?" The green girl snapped.

Elphaba had a point. Magic intimidated a lot of people. But, uncontrolled magic, especially magic as powerful as Elphaba's, could cause terrible trouble.

"But—"

"NO."

"If you don't learn to control your magic, it will consume you and the rest of Oz" Glinda said seriously.

Elphaba's expression changed from anger to fear. "It will?"

"Yeah, that's the first thing we learn. I'm actually surprised that you went this long without your magic taking you over. The more powerful you are, the more self-control it takes to subdue it." Glinda continued. "And you are probably as powerful as Morrible."

"Fine…" Elphaba said reluctantly. "Teach away."

Glinda half-smiled. "Good. Now, let's see what you already know"

Glinda was surprised at how much Elphaba knew without taking any classes. She already had pretty good control over her magic, but it needed work. She could already locate her magic, move it around, perform simple, unspoken spells, and transfer her magic. Things that Glinda had learned in her first month at Shiz, with the most renowned sorceress in Oz, which happened to be Madame Morrible. Despite her dislike of magic, Elphaba took her lesson seriously and retained every ounce of information. By the end of their little session, she was able to perform simple summoning and levitation spells, make a protective wall, and use the Sight, among other things. The Sight allowed people to see magic in people other than themselves. If Elphaba kept on at this rate, by the end of the semester, she would be giving Morrible sorcery lessons. Glinda laughed at the thought.

"What?" Elphaba asked her, almost grinning herself.

"Oh, nothing." Glinda said. "Just picturing you teaching Morrible a lesson in sorcery."

"I'll give her more than a lesson in sorcery" Elphaba said grudgingly. "She has it coming."

"Just tell me before you finish her off" Glinda said. "I want to be there."

They laughed. Glinda now realized how far they'd come. She recalled the beginning of the year. Neither of them would speak to each other. And now look at them, halfway through the year and they were friends. Good friends. Best friends, Glinda corrected herself. She smiled at the irony.

Unbeknownst to her, Elphaba was thinking the same thing. Funny how things work out, she thought.

Glinda looked at her friend, who was getting ready to go bed. So far her little plan was working out. Now, they just had to wait until tomorrow.

"Hey, aren't you coming down for dinner?" Glinda asked as she prettied herself to leave.

"No. I'm tired."

"Sure? I could bring you something if you want."

"No thanks. Could you make sure that Nessa and Nanny know where I am? They might be worried."

Glinda nodded before leaving her roommate alone. Elphaba sighed as she took out her Kumbrica book. She flipped lazily through the pages when something caught her eye. She looked more closely at the binding of the book. It seemed to be shimmering. Pulsing the faintest sea green. Or was it blue? Why hadn't she seen this before? Was this the mysterious Sight that Glinda kept blathering about? Was this light magic?

She turned back to the cover. The worn leather binding shimmered the same bluish color in a scattered pattern. She turned down the light to try to make out the pattern. The blue-green glowed brighter, forming letters before her eyes. 'Truth, Memories and Realization' shone in a wavering pattern before her eyes. Beneath that were two simple words in small italics. 'by Kumbrica'. Elphaba dropped the book as if it burnt her hands. Surely this book wasn't old enough to date back to Kumbrica's time. She backed away from the book, her heart pounding from shock.

"I'm dreaming." Elphaba told herself out loud. "This completely irrational. I'm probably tired is all." She looked back at the book and picked it up again hesitantly. The blue tinge had gone away, leaving the book as it was before she saw the questionable light emanating from it. She shook her head. This was making no sense whatsoever. She made to put the book back under her pillow, but stopped and shoved it under her mattress instead. She lay down on her bed, hoping to forget about the strange event. She glanced at Glinda's bedside table and picked up her sorcery book. She glanced through it. Maybe I should borrow this sometime, she thought to herself. You never know what might come up. She found a page marked with a bright pink piece of paper. It was decorated with hearts. Ugh, I think I've seen enough, Elphaba thought. Whatever was on that sheet of paper was none of her concern. It was probably some ode to Glinda's latest crush or something. She placed the book back on the table and yawned. She wouldn't dream tonight. Not after what had happened with the book. It will be another restless night of subconscious thought, Elphaba told herself. Within minutes she was asleep.

But she was wrong. Her dreams were of a mysterious girl child who hid herself from the world. Throughout her odd dream, her mind flashed with the vision of the blue-green lettering on the ancient book.

The next morning, she woke up confused and hungry. She vaguely remembered her dream. It slowly flowed from her mind as hunger took over. She stretched her legs and pulled off her covers. She quietly got ready for class, trying not to wake Glinda, Nanny, or Nessa.

Her choice to go to class, despite Morrible's offer was not only a silent protest, as most people thought it was. She went for two more reasons. First, she liked to learn, and second, she was able to see Fiyero. Outside of class, they barely ever met.

She walked to the cafeteria, where they were serving breakfast. She grabbed a roll and some jam, paid, and went to eat in the courtyard. Shortly afterward, she was joined by Boq, and consequently Fiyero. She suppressed a smile as Fiyero sat beside her on the bench. Boq forced them closer together by putting his large bag on the bench next to him.

"Why are you even going to class today?" Boq asked her. "It's not like you're required to or anything."

Elphaba looked at him pointedly and said "But that's where you're wrong. I require myself to go."

Boq shook his head. "Whatever floats your boat."

"So… uh, how've you been doing with the whole… umm… Ama Clutch ordeal?" Fiyero asked as sensitively as he could.

"Well, I'm fine. Angry, but fine. Glinda seems to have found something to occupy herself. Kumbrica knows what."

Boq hid a smirk.

"Kumbrica?" Fiyero asked interested. "I thought people around here and Munchkinland worshipped the Unnamed God or Lurline."

"Perhaps I'm not a person then." Elphaba said mysteriously.

"No, really" Fiyero pressed. "I read that a lot of people outside of the Vinkus believe that Kumbrica was evil. And of course you're a person. What else would you be?" He added.

"I think differently, is all. Kumbrica was a strong, independent character who's intentions were misunderstood because they were in the shadow of the deity Lurline." She said. " And how would you know whether I were human or not? Perhaps I'm an oversized elf." She smiled.

Fiyero smiled back. "So you see Kumbrica in a good light?"

"It depends on you're interpretation of the word good."

He looked at Elphaba curiously. "You can't be part elf, you know."

Elphaba raised her eyebrows at him, amused. "And why is that,dear Prince Fiyero?"

Boq listened intently, as he pretended to be studying a book.

Fiyero's face began to color. "Because, you're—"

The bell for class rang as he finished the last word. Boq heard him, but only because he was so close. He'd said 'beautiful'. Elphaba on the other hand had jumped up at the sound and nowscrunched her brow.

"Sorry, what?" She asked as she picked up her bag.

"Uh, nothing." Fiyero said, chickening out. "You don't look like an elf."

"Umm… thanks?"

Boq was on the verge of laughter.

"Come on, you two. Hurry up or we'll be late" He called to them. Ugh, lovebirds. He thought to himself.

Good going Fiyero, the Arjiki thought. You made yourself look like a total idiot.

The three walked into life sciences. They went to the back of the lecture hall. There were only a few seats available. Boq and Fiyero sat next to each other in a row, while Elphaba took an empty seat behind them.

Instead of taking notes, Elphaba found herself staring at the back of Fiyero's head the whole time. He obviously wasn't paying attention to the lecture either. Her eyes followed the emerging pattern of diamonds as they had so many times before. It never got old. She smiled, ever so slightly, in her calm reverie. The bell rang, jolting her out of her thoughts. She looked down at her notebook, hoping to find notes from the lecture. Instead, she found herself looking at a sketch of Fiyero, a diamond pattern bordering it. She felt herself turn red, or rather a darker shade of green. She slammed her notebook shut and looked at the clock. Had it really been three hours? She felt as if just a minute ago she was walking into the hall. She shoved her things into her bag and walked briskly out of the stuffy room. Outside, she found the air refreshing. She followed Boq and Fiyero to a table, where Glinda was waiting for them.

"Have fun in class?" She asked sardonically.

"Loads" Boq answered. "Will you ladies be joining us for lunch?" He asked as part of their plan.

"That would be nice" Glinda said, smiling. They to the cafeteria again to get food and came back to the table.

"Boq" Elphaba said, a question hitting her. "Where did you and the flamboyant couple end up going that one day?

"Um… we were planning to go to the Philosophy Club," He said, "But I, uh, chickened out a the last minute."

Glinda furrowed her brow. "Philosophy Club… Not the… sex club" She said incredulously.

"Erm…"

Boq turned bright red. Elphaba, sensing his embarrassment, cut the conversation short.

"So, what did you do today, Glinda?" She asked.

"Oh, this and that."

"Sounds fascinating. I'm thwarted by your use of detail." Elphaba said, rolling her eyes. Glinda stuck her tongue out at her. Boq and Fiyero stifled laughs at the childish rebuttal.

"So, I've been teaching Elphaba magic." Glinda announced proudly.

Boq raised his eyebrows. "Really"

"Show us something" Fiyero suggested. Elphaba looked at Glinda blankly.

"Oh, come on. You know you can do it." She said. "Here." She rifled through her purse and pulled out a familiar pink sheet of paper. "Read this."

Elphaba looked at her confused, but took the sheet from her anyway. What harm could it do? She looked at the words on the paper.

"Is this Gaeilge?" Elphaba asked, studying the complex lettering.

"A dialect of it, I suppose."

Fiyero looked at the girls inquisitively. Gaeilge, he thought, was a dead language. As far as he knew, only certain devout Kumbricians and theologists knew and understood it. He, at a young age, had had a caretaker who spoke it. She was a fairly ugly woman. He couldn't quite remember her name. Jakal?… Something like that. She was fairly lazy and taught him basics of the language to keep him quiet. It was a beautiful language. And apparently a magical one.

"Well, are you going to read it, or just sit there and stare at it?" Boq asked her, getting anxious. He assumed that this was part of Glinda's plan. Elphaba glared at him.

"Fine." She said, taking a deep breath. "Taispeaint liom gra, na cianna sin is cruinn. Taispeaint liom gra, na cianna sin is cruinn. Taispeaint—"

She stopped as the paper burst into red flames. It tore from her hands and flew over her head. It jerked about in the air erratically. Everyone, wide-eyed, stared after it. Suddenly it stopped in midair and floated to the ground, a thin plume of smoke trailing behind it.

"Well, that wasn't odd at all" Elphaba said, sarcastically. She bent down to pick up the charred paper. She looked at it and her eyes widened. She tucked it into her bag quickly.

What was that all about? Boq wondered silently. Glinda was smiling. Her plan had worked. She had succeeded in tricking Elphaba.

Fiyero just stared. He hadn't heard or spoken Gaeilge in years, but he still understood it. 'Show me my love, the one that is true'. That was the rough translation. Obviously Glinda had the idea that Elphaba liked someone, and wanted to find out who. His heart fell. Elphaba likes someone else, he thought. Great.

"So… that was a nice little show, wasn't it?" Elphaba said, hoping that the spell was just a random one that Glinda picked out of her book.

"Yeah" Boq said. Did the plan work? He couldn't tell. He was so confused.

Elphaba looked at Glinda. "We'll talk later" She said stiffly. "I have to go." She stood and walked back to the dorms.

"I should go to" Fiyero said, trying to disguise the disappointment in his voice. He got up and stalked off.

Boq watched the two walk away, more confused by the second. "What was that?" He asked Glinda.

"That" She said, "Was my plan working and failing at the same time." She now wore a pout on her face.

"How so?"

"The spell was supposed totell who Elphie loves. I had no idea it would fly around like that. Actually, I had no idea how it worked period. But I think Elphaba figured it out."

"Oh… So, what about Fiyero ditching us?"

Glinda thought for a moment, and shrugged. "You'll have to ask him that. But right now, I have to go talk to Elphaba. Wish me luck"

"Yeah… Lots."

* * *

so, uh, the chant was Irish-Gaelic and probably makes no sense to a person who actually studies it. online dictionaries suck. hopefully i will update soon and well. reviews might speed it up a bit... WINK.WINK 


	7. Fear and Flight

sorry about the delay. i blame my attention span. if this chapter doesn't make any sense or if it sucks, tell me and i'll rewrite it. i don't think that i captured the characters very well in this... but anyhow, i need some ideas of where i should take this story. in other words, review! please?

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Glinda followed Elphaba back to their room. She had a feeling that this was going to be an ugly conversation. She sighed heavily before pushing the door open. Elphaba was sitting on her bed, staring into space. 

"So, what was that spell?" She asked calmly, but darkly.

Glinda sighed again. "Me and Boq just wanted to know for sure if you liked Fiyero. I mean, I really thought that you did, but after that odd reaction…"

"You could've just asked! I don't need to be publicly humiliated. I get that by just walking out the door!" Elphaba said, exasperatedly.

"Well, I'm sorry, but even if I did ask flat out, you wouldn't have told me! And in case you didn't notice, I still don't know." Glinda said.

"You're probably right about me not answering you, but it's none of your business who I like and don't like"

"But he likes you." Glinda told her. She knew she wasn't supposed to, but she had a feeling that it would help the situation.

Elphaba looked at her. "I highly doubt that. It's probably just some sort of joke." But Fiyero didn't seem like that type of person, her inner voice said.

"What reason does he have to do that? And if he did, why wouldn't he tell you first, instead of Boq? If I knew about this nefarious plot, would I even be helping the cause? You're my friend! And I wouldn't do that." Glinda retorted. " And I spent a LOT of time planning this whole thing out. Do you have ANY idea how much I had to study and how much planning this took? You should be proud of me."

Elphaba couldn't help but smile at that. She stifled a laugh.

"What?" Glinda said, frustrated.

"Nothing. I just didn't think you had the focus to do something like this."

"Exactly! I don't! That's why you should be proud of me!"

"I am." Elphaba said. "Just not under these circumstances."

"So are you going to tell me?" Glinda asked hopefully.

"Tell you what?"

"If you like Fiyero, you dolt!" Glinda cried.

"Well when you put it like that…"

"Elphie!"

"…Yes?"

"Do you like him?"

"I just said!"

"Yes?"

"YES! Okay? Happy?" Elphaba fell back on her pillow, and Glinda squealed with delight.

"I knew it! You two are going to be so cute together!"

"Wait…" Elphaba said sitting up. "You knew? How?"

"Well when you stare at him like a fool every time he's near, it's pretty easy to tell."

"Is it really?"

Glinda rolled her eyes. "Did you ever end up thanking him for bringing you back that one night?"

Elphaba shook her head.

"Well, when you do, you should tell him that you like him. That might be a good time."

Elphaba nodded, unaware of what Glinda had just said. "I'm going for a walk" She said.

"Okay, but don't pass out this time" Glinda said. Elphaba smirked as she walked out of the room.

She walked out to the old beaten path to the woods. She made her way to the big willow in the woods. When she got there, she let herself fall against the wide trunk. She closed her eyes to think about what was going on. She didn't really like Fiyero, did she? Could spells lie? She pulled the charred piece of paper out of her cloak. There, burnt into the sheet, was a picture and a few words Fiyero... Her fingers traced the burnt image of the face she longed to see. Above her, she heard a rustling. She quickly tucked away the picture and looked up.

As if her wish came true, there was Fiyero sitting on the branches of the tree, staring up at the sky. She heard him sigh. She closed her eyes and thought about what she was going to say. She cleared her throat. Startled, Fiyero lost his balance and fell. He caught one of the lower branches and hoisted himself upon it with smooth gracefulness.

"Um… hi." Elphaba said. Great, she probably sounded like an imbecile. Fiyero looked at her, surprised.

"Hi" He said, collecting himself. "How can I help you?"

"Can we talk?" Elphaba said, butterflies fluttering about in her stomach. Those eyes… She thought to herself. They're hypnotizing…

"Sure" He said. "What about?" There seemed to be a sadness in his voice.

"About earlier…" She stopped. "Is something bothering you? You seem a little off…"

"Yeah… a little" He said. He jumped down from the tree, just in front of her. "The spell… who did it say you loved?" He blurted.

Elphaba's heart stopped. "You understood it?"

"Basically. Who was it? I need to know."

"But why—"

"Because I like you! …A lot" Now was the moment of truth. He stared into her eyes, hoping that she would say the same.

Her sharp features seemed to soften and her mouth fell slightly open. Lost for words, she took the paper out of her pocket and handed it to him. His eyes, which were once fixated on her own, drifted down to the paper in his hand. His heart swelled as he saw what was burnt onto it. 'Elphaba loves…Fiyero" There was a picture of him between the words. She liked him! No… she loved him!

He looked back into her eyes, the deep blue sparkling with happiness. Her eyes were filled with mixed emotions. It perplexed him.

"What's wrong?" He asked her quietly. Moving closer to her. He positioned his hands on her waist. Unable to control himself, he slowly moved toward her more and more, until his forehead was touching hers. His breath mingled with hers. He began to tilt his head to kiss her, when she pulled back quickly.

"I don't think I can do this" She said softly.

"Why?"

"I--I just can't" She whispered. With that, she ran off.

"Wait! Elphaba!" But she didn't turn back.

He didn't understand what she was feeling. She had never been liked, love liked, in her life. And now, here was a boy who barely knew her for a month telling her that he did. She, as much as she hated to admit it, was afraid. Afraid of love, being loved, losing love…but mostly loving someone else. She had experience taking care of people, but out of obligation, not love. And she was green for Oz sake! How much experience with so-called 'love' had she had? Everything was happening way too fast… the two deaths, a new boy, new powers, threats by a teacher, and now, new feelings… She wanted to toss them all away, so her life could go back to normal (if she could call it that).

She ran back to Crage Hall, up the stairs, past her dorm, and up to the roof, barely stopping to utter apologies to the people she was running over. She ducked under one of the eaves and buried her head into her arms.

Guilt… she felt bad about just leaving Fiyero there without an explanation. She was used to guilt. She'd felt guilty ever since she was born for causing her parents so much grief, but this was different. He had just told him that he liked her and tried to kiss her!

Confusion… how could anyone like her, anyway? She was green, yes, but she was also cold, sarcastic, and stolid. As far as she could tell, there was nothing to like about her. But… how could she like him? She had been told by so many people, including her father, that she was incapable of liking anyone. Loving anyone. Until this past week, they'd all been right. Or were they still right? What if this was just a fluke? What if the spell was wrong? No… you can't doubt ancient magic.

Fear… she was afraid that she hurt Fiyero. That was the last thing she wanted. She was afraid that he didn't really love her, but that this was another terrible joke on the green girl. She was afraid of disappointing him, if they did take the next step. But mostly, she was afraid that she wouldn't see him again as she did before; as friends…as more.

Why did life have to go and change on her?

Elphaba couldn't bring herself to face Fiyero again. Ama Clutch's funeral passed before they exchanged more than a quick 'hello'. It was at a party arranged by Tibbett and Crope after the funeral to help lighten the mood (and as another excuse to get drunk off of their asses). By that time, Elphaba had time to think about what was going on in her life. She had a choice to make. The way she saw it, she could either go away and continue helping the Animals, or she could stay and be with Fiyero. After much deliberation and self-torture, she decided that Fiyero probably never wanted to see her again. That night, she was going to leave for the Emerald City, never to return.

"Here" Announced Tibbett dramatically " We raise a glass (or 20) of wine to our dearly departed Ama Clutch. May she rest peacefully."

Glinda was teary, but as she drank more and more wine, her cares and inhibitions left her. Soon, everybody was drunk, except for Elphaba and Nessa. Nanny was questionable. She swayed a bit, but her head was still clear. Elphaba chose her opportunity to leave carefully. Nanny dragged Nessa home after another hour, and now there was talk of going to the Philosophy Club. While they argued with each other about whether to go or not, she slipped out of her chair and out the door, whispering a quiet goodbye. She clutched her school bag, which now contained clothes, a blanket, some money, and prized possessions, such as her beloved book. She walked briskly to the carriage station and asked for carriage to the Emerald City.

"You'll have to wait an hour. No cabs from this shift are available, but the next shift will be ready soon." Said the stubby manager.

"Very well."

She sat down upon an old bench and sighed heavily. This is the right thing to do, she told her self sternly. There's nothing left for me here, she lied. She tried to block out memories of her friends. Glinda. Boq. Even Crope and Tibbett. Fiyero… NO! she yelled at herself. Stop thinking about them! It will only make it worse… She buried her head in her arms.

"Elphie!" A high voice called to her. She looked up quickly. Glinda was there, staggering toward her.

"Glinda, you're drunk. Go back home"

"No!" Glinda said defiantly, her word barely slurring. "I'll be fine in a minute."

Elphaba raised her eyebrows. "Right, and Ozma will be back in a matter of seconds." But surely enough, Glinda was sober within a few minutes.

"I took a potion." Glinda explained. "Cures drunkenness and hangovers. Great for parties."

"Where are the others?"

"Philosophy Club, except for Fiyero… He said he wasn't up to it or something…strange" Glinda replied. "Where are you off to?"

"Nowhere" Elphaba said. Well, nowhere Glinda wanted to be under the circumstances…

Glinda eyed Elphaba, unconvinced, but didn't press the issue. "So, how are you and Fiyero doing? You didn't seem to talk much at dinner."

"There is no 'me and Fiyero'"

"After all that trouble and you two STILL didn't hook up!" Glinda exclaimed huffily. "WHY?"

Elphaba winced. She'd hoped that Glinda would just assume they were doing fine until she left. "Things didn't…click. Is that the word?"

Glinda nodded slowly. "So, he likes you and you like him, but things didn't 'click'? Well, if that's the case, there's no hope for the rest of us!"

"Well, the rest of you aren't green, or ochre with blue diamonds in Fiyero's case."

Glinda rolled her eyes. Her movements were becoming less graceful, and more of a swagger again.

"Glinda? Are you okay? I think that potion is wearing off…" Elphaba said, concerned.

"Yeah, the potion doesn't last too long." She said, her words beginning to slur again. "I'm going back to the dorms. Are you coming?"

Elphaba thought for a moment. Was she really going to let her drunk friend walk back on her own? Her thoughts were interrupted by the carriage master.

"Miss! Your carriage is ready!"

"Carriage? I thought you thed you weren't going anywhur!"

Elphaba sighed. "I'm going to the Emerald City."

"AH!" Glinda screeched. "I looove the Emruld thity! I'm going wiff you!"

"Do I get a say in the matter?" Elphaba asked.

"No" Glinda said as she fell into the awaiting carriage. Elphaba climbed in after her and tossed her gently into a seat. There was no way she was letting Glinda walk around like this. Within moments, the incoherent blonde was passed out in front of her. They always said that the Gillikinese couldn't hold their alcohol… Elphaba shook her head and sighed heavily. As the carriage started moving, she leaned against the window, the movement of the carriage slowly rocking her to sleep.

When she woke, she found Glinda still sprawled out on the seat in front of her. She didn't bother waking her. She knew how irritable hung over people could be. She saw it a great deal when she traveled with her family into Quadling Country. She shook away the depressing thoughts and looked around for something to keep her occupied. She felt around in her bag and closed her hand around her old book. She had barely touched it since the mysterious words had appeared and disappeared from the cover. She pulled it out, hesitantly and looked at the cover again. There were no words, but for the ones that were imprinted on the tattered leather binding.

Elphaba furrowed her brow. She waved her hand across the cover, determined to read the words with fresh eyes. Nothing happened. She took a deep breath, focused, and tried again. She stared intently at the cover, waiting for the words to reappear. She sighed. She opened the book to the first page. Suddenly, the book flashed with light. Elphaba jumped. The light gathered and seemed to sink into the pages in the form of words. She squinted against the brightness of the light. 'Entry 1: Rejection, the beginning'. Those were the last words she saw before she passed out.

Images flashed in her mind… the book, a girl, an angry crowd… The girl was unusual… She had sharp features. She was of medium build. She looked normal enough, except for her eyes. Her eyes were a bright, luminous yellow with purple and brown and green sparkling in their depths. Those eyes weren't human. This was the same mysterious girl form her other dream… wasn't it? The girl walked about with a staff in hand, hobbling about an ancient village. She seemed to stand out from the crowd, even as she wore the plainest clothes. She had a confident air about her, even as she kept her head down. Everyone in the streets stopped to stare at her. A murmur rippled through the crowd and a gang of boys emerged, smirking. 'Hey, witch! Witch!' The girl kept on walking, her chin set determinedly. 'Witch! We're talking to you!' A tall boy blocked her path. She tried to push past him, but he grabbed her and threw her to the ground. 'Don't walk away when I'm talking to you!' The boy said angrily. The girl glared at him and picked herself up. 'Don't make me angry' she said calmly, ' Neither of us will like it.' 'Are you threatening me?' The boy asked incredulously. He looked at his entourage. 'I think she's threatening me!' The group began talking at once, saying things like, 'What could Wolf-eyes ever do? She's useless!', 'Come on! Flog her! No one threatens you and gets away with it!', 'Get her! Beat the freak senseless!'. The leader smirked at her again. 'Boys? Get some rocks.' Rocks? Oh no, the girl thought, fear filling her every limb. Her face remained stone. Emotionless. Before she could run, the large boy in front of her grabbed her and held her in place, in a painful headlock. NO! her mind screamed to her. She lost control of herself. There was a blue green flash and the boy who was holding her down flew across the street into a wall. He was knocked unconscious. The crowd fell into a fearful chatter. 'She is a witch! Kill her!' voices screamed. All sorts of items flew towards her. Rocks, bottles, food… anything people could get their hands on. The girl tried to run, looking out for the objects flying towards her. She turned her head to see a large rock flying straight towards her body. She screamed.

Elphaba awoke in a cold sweat. She rubbed her side, where a bruise was forming. She moved her hand aside to find a white sequined shoe at her side.

"Elphie! Are you awake?" Glinda asked groggily.

"Now I am." She said, still stunned by the vivid nightmare. "What happened?"

"You were screaming"

"So you threw a shoe at me?" Elphaba asked as she tossed the shoe back to Glinda.

"Yes! I have a terrible headache!"

"That's what you get for drinking more than your weight in wine."

Glinda made a face at her. "Where are we anyway?"

"You don't remember? You only insisted on coming with me. To the Emerald City? Ringing any bells here?"

"Emerald City…" Glinda muttered under her breath. "I kind of remember… Why are we going?"

"I'm going because I need to have a little talk with our Glorious Wizard." She said with mock enthusiasm. "You're going because I'm not so mean as to let you wander about Shiz drunk off you ass, my dear Glinda"

Glinda pressed her fist to her head and closed her eyes tight. "Elphie?"

"Yes?"

Glinda slumped over against the side of the rocking carriage. "NEVER let me drink that much alcohol, ever again."

* * *

iheart my reviewers. they rock my sox. 


	8. Girl talk

sorry for being a bum and not updating, for those of you who read. i'd like to thank Annibelle White for editing and giving me some ideas to move the story along, since i've seemed to have lost the plot somewhere along the way... yeah, so... here we go. (ha, that rhymed)

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For the next night, Glinda slept. She was like a rock. No matter how many potholes in the road they hit, she kept right on sleeping. Elphaba, on the other hand, was afraid to go back to sleep. She didn't want any more of those terrible dreams. They reminded her ever so slightly of her own past, though she never had a huge break in her control over her magic. She had, however, had various things thrown at her. She never wanted to think about those times ever again. She spent enough of her time trying to force those memories out of her mind. The last thing she needed was a nightmare to bring them rushing back to her head.

She stared at her hands in the darkness. This was the time of day, or night rather, that she loved. Nobody could tell what color her skin was. She looked almost normal. She flexed her bony fingers and tangled them together, an old nervous habit. She clenched her jaw and broke her hands apart. Lingering on memories and dreams is useless, she told herself.

She looked out the window into the dark abyss of the night. The sky overhead was blinking with stars. They sparkled like…like diamonds. As she watched them shine, her vision blurred. The luminous stars seemed to move around and change colors. Before she knew it, a vision of Fiyero was in her mind. She felt a burning the corners of her eyes. She wiped the unconscious tears from her eyes and swallowed the lump in her throat.

No, Elphaba. She thought. You can't miss someone so much that you've only known for such a short time! You can't love anyone! You're incapable. She tore her eyes away from the window and spent the rest of the night staring unblinkingly at the wall.

"Elphie?"

"Mm?"

"Are we there yet?"

"No." Elphaba said, irritated.

"No need to be so grumpy! Did you get any sleep last night?"

"No."

"Was it because of the nightmare?"

Elphaba looked the blonde, thinking. It had started out that way, yes… But then…

"Or was it…?" Glinda trailed off, not wanting to press much further.

"What?"

"Fiyero."

Elphaba was quiet for a moment. Surely she wasn't THAT transparent. "Of course not! Why would he be keeping me awake at night?"

With that, the Gillikinese burst into a frustrated rant. "Oh, come on! Why do you keep on lying to yourself? He loves you and you KNOW you love him back! You may think you can fool the world, Elphie, but you can't fool me! Well, at least not this time. And why did you sneak off like that? You scared me, and you definitely scared Fiyero."

"It wouldn't be the first time," Elphaba said, sarcastically. But the words came out tinged with regret.

"Stop thinking like that. No matter how scary you pretend to be, I know that you're a real person on the inside. Don't give me that look. I don't mean you were ever a beast or anything. I mean you have emotions that need tending to. You're just different from most people because, unlike them, you're usually true to yourself. But you've changed lately." Glinda watched Elphaba as she sat silently, taking in those words. "I think we need to have some, dare I say it, girl talk."

Elphaba winced at the notion. She pulled her knees up to her chest.

"So… what happened between you and Fiyero?"

"Nothing!" Elphaba said sharply.

Glinda sighed. "No, I mean, exactly _what_ happened? I know you two spoke to each other after the spell. Alone." She clarified. "He came looking for you. He said you'd run off."

Elphaba felt a lump rising in her throat. She tried to ignore it, focusing her attention on a spot on the carriage wall. "Glinda, I really don't want to talk about this right now." She said, trying to sound composed. Her voice almost cracked.

"Elphie…" Glinda said sympathetically. She moved forward to hug the distressed green girl. Elphaba pushed her away.

"Stop. I don't need your pity. Nothing happened." Elphaba snapped.

_Well, at least she's back to normal…_ Glinda thought to herself. "Tell me what happened or I'll put make-up on you while you're sleeping."

"N—what?" Elphaba lowered her knees from her chest and stared at the Gillikinese.

"I'll put make-up on you while you're sleeping" Glinda said proudly.

"You won't touch me!" Elphaba said threateningly.

"Try me." Glinda said brightly. Elphaba glared at her.

"Fine." She said, simply.

The blonde frowned. Why did Elphaba have to be so stubborn? Surely there was something that would make her talk… "Well, will you at least tell me if you still like Fiyero?"

"Why? What difference does it make?"

"Maybe I like him" Glinda lied. Sure, she liked him as a person, but nothing more. "But I won't take him if you still like him."

Elphaba looked at Glinda, shocked. She felt betrayed. "You can't have him." Elphaba said protectively. Glinda put on a mock look of surprise.

"Why? I thought you two weren't going out? He should be a free agent." She said in her snobbiest voice.

Anger began pulsing through Elphaba's veins. "The only reason we're not is because I ran when he tried to kiss me!" She screamed. She clapped her hand over her mouth, realizing what she'd said.

Glinda cut off her act. "Aww! He tried to kiss you! That's adorable." She gushed. Suddenly her mood changed. "And you RAN? Are you crazy?"

"That seems to be the consensus." Elphaba said, "but at least I'm not a damned trickster. What's the count now? Glinda two, Elphaba nothing." She added icily.

Glinda folded her arms across her chest, offended. "It's not like I have much of a choice with you! If you were more open with people, I wouldn't have to trick you into telling me anything."

Elphaba sighed. She has a point, a voice in her head told her. Shut up, she told it back. "So I suppose you'd like to know the whole story?" She said, realizing there was no point in not telling her the rest of that day's events. Glinda, after all, was her best friend.

Glinda nodded her head excitedly. Elphaba closed her eyes and recalled what had happened.

"So, as you know, I went for a walk…"

"And you ran into Fiyero?"

"Yes, and - "

"Where?"

"Are you going to let me finish one sentence? I'll get to it when I get to it! So, I went for a walk in the woods, yes where I fainted, and I was looking at that paper you had me magic."

"Can I see it?" Glinda asked anxiously.

"What?"

"The paper, dummy!"

Elphaba reached into her cloak's inner pocket. It was empty. "Oz no…" She said quietly. She looked at Glinda. "Fiyero has it."

"So, you told him that you love him?" Glinda asked puzzled. "I didn't think that you were one to express your deep, dark feelings like that."

"Well, that's because he said it first. I was just, I don't know… filling in the blanks for him, for lack of better words." Elphaba said, uncomfortable with all of the questions.

"Oh…" Glinda nodded her head. "Go on! This sounds good." Too bad the ending is terrible, she thought.

"Well, I sat for a while under this big willow tree, and I looked up and Fiyero was in it. I guess he was startled when he realized I was there, because he almost fell completely out of the tree."

Glinda stifled a laugh.

"--Yeah, it was kind of funny. Something seemed to be bothering him, so I asked him about it. Oh, and you're plan wasn't exactly flawless. He understood the spell. He asked me what the paper said; I asked why, and then… Well, he told me that he likes me. I don't really know what came over me. I just handed him the paper."

Glinda had a sickeningly sweet look on her face.

"Don't look at me like that!" Elphaba snapped.

"Then keep going," Glinda replied, looking at her normally again.

"Well, he read it, smiled, and looked right at me. I—I felt like I couldn't do anything. Like I was frozen. I don't know what it was. Then next thing I knew, his forehead was touching mine and he was about to kiss me."

"And then you ran." Glinda finished.

"Yeah." Elphaba said, looking down.

"Where did you go? Fiyero came to the dorm looking for you. I told him you went on a walk, and he says that you two were talking and that you ran off."

"The roof," she said laconically, "to think."

Glinda was about to open her mouth to ask more, but the carriage lurched to a stop, and the cabbie cried, "We've arrived at the Emerald City!"

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the next chapter will be more eventful, but i'm most likely not going to be updating for quite a while (like that's new...) because of finals. runs and hides in corner. oh, yeah. i also have to thank lorelei alice for having my back. you rock. andof course, here's me being obnoxious: R+R! Danke.


	9. A Little Insanity

reviewers, i'm offended. jk, but not. it's a good thing that i'm not one of those people who will stop a story if they don't get reviews on a chapter... yeah, so because of the turnout last chapter, i get to punish you with a chapter that has no sufficient ending. laughs evilly & chokes coughcough. right then. moving on...

* * *

The carriage lurched to a stop, and the cabbie cried, "We've arrived at the Emerald City!"

"We'll talk later," Glinda said. She picked up her obnoxiously bright pink purse and stepped gracefully out of the carriage. Elphaba grabbed her full messenger bag and followed suit. She stared in awe of the magnificent city around her. She must have been standing there for quite a long time, because Glinda grabbed her elbow and began dragging her along.

"Let go!" Elphaba protested. She pulled her arm out of the surprisingly strong hold Glinda had on her. "Okay, now would you stop for just a minute?" The blonde was buzzing about the streets looking at this building and that with an insane amount of energy. "Glinda!"

The Gillikinese finally snapped out of her frenzy to face Elphaba. "What?"

"Don't you remember why we're—well, I'm—here?"

Glinda rolled her eyes. "Well, of course! To see our Glorious Wizard and go on a shopping spree."

"At least you're half right." Elphaba said irritated. "We have to get to the palace first, then you can go shopping."

"Don't you mean we?" Glinda asked with a smile. "I could get you a completely new wardrobe, instead of those plain, drab frocks you wear. You'll be in high fashion and Fiyero will be knocked off his feet. Everyone - "

"First of all, I don't like shopping. Second, I like my clothes the way they are. Pretty is overrated. Third, I don't have money to spend on anything other than food. Fourth, Fiyero has a hard enough time staying on his feet as it is." Elphaba argued deftly. _Not to mention I'm not planning on going back…_

Glinda frowned. "Fine. Will you at least come with me?"

"Only if you come with me to see the Wizard."

The Emerald City was brilliant and, of course, green in every direction. The buildings towered majestically over the wide streets. Markets dotted the sidewalks, and there were people from everywhere in Oz, maybe even beyond, wandering about. Gillikinese, Munchkinlanders, even a few from the Vinkus and Quadling Country_. But not an Animal in sight_, observed Elphaba. The pair of students emerged from the crowded street into a large square. A magnificent palace rose opposite them, with flags-green with red crosses- billowing regally from high turrets in the warm breeze.

The girls stopped, gaping at the sight. Butterflies fluttered about Elphaba's stomach. "Maybe we should just go back." She said, having second thoughts.

"No way! We traveled two days while I was hung over and more irritable than ever. We're going." Glinda made her point by dragging Elphaba across the square. Elphaba didn't bother fighting. She was too enraptured by feelings of awe and anticipation to care.

"Excuse me," Glinda said to a palace guard, "We're here to see the Wizard."

"Good luck with that." The guard scoffed. "The Wizard isn't in the best of moods. He made a point to say he wouldn't see anyone unless they were as green as the city itself. So, unless you're - "

Elphaba stepped from behind Glinda. The guard jumped back in surprise. "I believe we have a date with the Wizard, _Officer_. Wizard's orders." She smiled to herself. For once, a positive side to being green.

Reluctantly, the guard led them inside of the castle. "Tell me that's make-up." He said, meaning for only Glinda to hear.

"Yeah." Elphaba cut in. "I wish"

She saw the guard shudder. _So much for blending in at the Emerald City_, she thought cynically. The guard stopped before a pair of tall doors, gilded with gold.

"Okay, right through this door. Just keep following the torches and stop when you see the gigantic head." He motioned to two more guards who might have well been statues. They moved stiffly to open the doors wide, revealing a dark passage way. The girls stepped inside and the door closed loudly behind them. Their footsteps echoed on the black marble floor. The only other sound was the occasional pop from the flame of a torch.

Glinda had a desperate hold on Elphaba's right arm. Her nails dug into her elbow. The dark hall finally surrendered itself to a dimly lit dark green room. A monstrous bronze head hung from the wall, illuminated by green flames. _Well, now we know what all of Oz's money is disappearing to_, Elphaba thought. She glanced, if not nervously then anxiously, around the room.

"Elphie," Glinda whispered to her, "I don't think he's here. We should go back."

Elphaba turned to her to respond, but a deep rumbling throughout the room made her lose her train of thought. Glinda squeaked and tightened her hold on Elphaba.

"I AM OZ, THE GREAT AND TERRIBLE!" The head seemed to say. "WHO GOES THERE?"

Elphaba broke away from Glinda, who was trembling in fear. "Elphaba Thropp." She threw a sidelong glance at Glinda, who was frozen. "And Glinda Arduenna."

The head grunted in… understanding? "ELPHABA THROPP, THE GREEN GIRL OF OZ. YOU'RE HEADMISTRESS HAS WRITTEN TO ME ABOUT YOUR…TALENTS. SHE WRITES OF MISS ARDUENNA AS WELL." The voice of the head seemed to get quieter. A clanking came from the back of the tiktok contraption, and a thin old man stepped out.

All fear seemed to drain out of the girls. The 'Great and Terrible' Wizard had more of a fatherly look than that of someone to be feared.

"You're the Wizard?" Glinda shrieked in surprise.

"Of course! What did you expect? Some sort of Beast?" He chortled. Elphaba stiffened at the pronunciation of 'Beast'.

"Speaking of Beasts…" She began.

"Elphaba, not now!" Glinda hissed at her. The Wizard looked at them oddly.

"Oh, there's no need to worry about those Animals. With the way things are going, in a few years, there will only be animals left." He said professionally.

"What!" Elphaba yelled. "Is that you're 'wonderful' plan? Wipe out an entire race? You're insane."

The Wizard looked unfazed by her outburst. "It's for the well-being of Oz. And we're not killing them."

"Well-being of Oz? I'm sure Animals cause SO much trouble trying to make a living, feed their families, and, as of late, not get killed!" Elphaba retaliated.

"We're not killing them, I told you."

"Then what the hell are you doing to them? Making them slaves? Forcing them into camps?"

"The camps are only temporary. There's a new invention called a cage that we will be using. The Animals will still be alive. They will just regress to animals."

"That's sick!" Elphaba spat. "Do you really think that you can get away with this?"

"It's working isn't it?" He smiled evilly. "Now, I _was _going to offer you a job as my assistant. A Vice-Wizard, if you will. But seeing as you're unable to see the good in my Glorious plan, I'll have to find someone else." He turned to Glinda, who was watching the argument in shock. "That was easy. Now, Miss Arduenna, I'd like to test you're skills to see if you have what it takes to be Vice-Wizard." He pulled a fairly large book from beneath his green coat and handed it to Glinda. She took it absentmindedly. Elphaba looked over the blonde's shoulder. _The Grimmerie,_ she read, _a book of spells_.

"Glinda, don't do it." She said seriously. "Whatever he says, don't do it."

"That's enough out of you!" The Wizard snapped. "Say another word and I'll have you arrested." Elphaba seethed with anger. Out of sheer frustration, she grabbed Glinda and the book and ran out of the room. She dragged Glinda out of the palace and into a narrow street.

"Elphaba!" Glinda whined. "I could've been Vice- Wizard. _Vice-Wizard!_"

"Do you really think that this man is trying to help Oz? You must be insane!" Elphaba said. "Especially after what he said about the Animals!"

"I'm not insane!" Glinda retorted. "How about this: Today, we just go shopping for a little while, I'll write a letter to the Wizard telling him that I'd like to finish school before taking any offers, and we can go back to Shiz"

Elphaba nodded her head slowly. She tucked the Grimmerie into her overflowing bag and followed Glinda into various shops, selling overly frilly dresses, too short skirts, and shoes that were uncomfortable, even when you looked at them. She made sure to keep her face and hands fairly covered by a shawl/scarf, in case the Wizard was looking for her. Elphaba told Glinda to get food and water for the journey back, so they filled two boxes with pastries. As the sun began to dip below the horizon, they were waiting for a carriage to come and Glinda was sending her letter to the Wizard. By the time it arrived, the sky was turning a deep purple. Elphaba helped Glinda pile her many bags of clothing into the carriage. When Glinda was inside, she closed the door.

"Elphaba? What do you think you're doing? Get in here!" She said loudly.

"No, Glinda. I can't go back with you. There's… something that needs to be done. Don't try to find me. I'll have gone underground. I'll miss you dearly. Tell the others that too."

The carriage driver was getting irritated and grunted. Elphaba motioned to him 'just a minute'.

"Elphaba! Don't do this!" Glinda said, tears staring in a steady stream down her face.

"I have to Glinda. And don't cry. It's unbecoming. Tell everyone goodbye for me."

"What about Fiyero? Don't you know what you're leaving behind?" Glinda was screeching. Elphaba looked down for a moment.

"Tell him… tell him that I still love him and always will. Tell him that I'm not leaving because of him." She said, blinking furiously to ward off tears. "I know what I'm leaving behind. And… I hope that someday, we'll meet, look back on this and you'll forgive me. Goodbye, Glinda."

She nodded to the carriage driver, who was delighted that they would finally be leaving. As the carriage rolled away, Elphaba could hear the teary shrieks of Glinda.

"Elphie!"

Elphaba turned her head and walked into the Emerald City's dark alleys. The slums would be her home now. She didn't have enough money for anything better. She let the shawl fall from her face and drape around her shoulders. She looked around the trash-decorated alley, searching for a sign or ad for somewhere to live. She heard a rustling from behind her. She jerked around to see a man, obviously drunk, smiling maliciously at her.

"Hey, bitch," He slurred. "Wanna have the time of you're life?" He growled, moving his hips in a grotesque manner.

_Oh, shit_, she thought fearfully. She began to run, but he caught her around the wrist.

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okay, sothe line that the dude says, uh... i know. terrible. i can't think. review or suffer a beating from... selects random object in front of her... a coffee mug! (there's nothing good here...)

psh... e.r.

(thanks to Annibelle White for looking over this)


	10. So This Is Home

**i am a bad, bad person. hangs head in shame when was the last time i updated again? oh well. here's the next chapter (obviously). a thanks to holly j.for... well actually nothing yet. thanks to annibelle white for editing and making things fit better. you rock. and azulah lilavati for not killing me for pestering her 24/7.**

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The two days that it took the get back to Shiz, Glinda spent either crying or tossing and turning. When the carriage finally pulled up to Shiz, she dried her eyes and dragged her many bags of clothes back to her dorm. Nessa was sitting idly in front of the window.

"Where did you and Elphaba go?" She asked, turning herself to face Glinda. "And where's Elphaba now?"

Glinda felt the tears well up in her eyes again and she pulled out a pink handkerchief to wipe them. "We went to the Emerald City," Glinda said, her voice wavering.

"Why couldn't I go?" Nessa asked jealously. "Where's Elphaba? I'm going to tell Father about this!"

"It wasn't exactly a planned trip, Nessa. Elphaba was going to go by herself. I just barged in as she was about to leave," She started. "And Nessa? Nessa, I'm sorry, but… we won't be seeing Elphie for a while. She didn't come back." She was unable to hold in her sobs for any longer. She ran to her bed and buried her head in pillows. Nessa sat there dazed.

"Nanny!" She cried. "Nanny, I need you!" Tears started falling freely from her eyes. Nanny came in to see the two crying hysterically.

"Now what's happened here? Was it a boy?" She asked suspiciously as she wiped Nessarose's tears with her sleeve. "Oh, welcome back, Glinda. Where's Elphaba? She needs good scolding for running off. You, too, Glinda. If I ran this school you two would be out of here before you could say -"

"Elphaba's run away," Nessa choked. "She didn't even say goodbye!"

Nanny's anger dissipated. A grandmotherly look crossed her face. It was a mix of worry and sympathy. "Come, come, dearie. Our Fabala's a good girl. She can take care of herself." She said with a false sense of security. "Now, let's get you to bed and I'll write Frexspar in the morning."

Nessa nodded daintily and motioned for Nanny to wheel her into her room. "How could she do this to me? Leaving me all alone!" Glinda heard her say before the door closed.

Glinda stood up, stumbling, drunk with tears. She found her way to the bathroom and turned on the sink. She looked into the mirror, seeing dark makeup streaking down her cheeks. She splashed cool water on her face, scrubbing it furiously as if it would cleanse her of her misery. She looked back at the reflection in the mirror, she could almost see the green girl leaning against the wall behind her smirking, saying, "Oh, Glindy, suck it up. You act as if I'm dead. Now get to bed. You've got classes tomorrow and a lot of catching up to do." Glinda nodded as if she actually heard the words and did as she was "told".

The next morning she was woken from her restless sleep. Nanny stood over her shaking her shoulders lightly.

"Come now, dear. You've got to get to classes. Not to mention Madame Fish-head wants to speak with you. You can sleep more later." Nanny said callously. Glinda didn't move. "Up, up, up!" The old lady threw the blankets off of her and opened the window shades. Glinda squinted at the light and sat up. She noticed that Nessa wasn't awake.

"How is she taking it?" Glinda gestured towards Nessa's room.

"Oh, she'll be fine. They weren't that close anyway. In a few days, the poor child will be raving mad at Fabala."

Glinda furrowed her brow. "How do you figure?"

Nanny sighed. "Nessarose has blamed Elphaba for her disability forever. Now it's so easy for her to blame Elphaba, she does it all of the time."

"Why does she blame Elphaba?"

"Because their father." She said darkly. "Or at least Nessa's father convinced them both that Elphaba is responsible for everything that goes wrong. Ever since their mother died." Nanny pulled a watch out of her pocket. "Glinda dear, you've got to be out of here in a clock tick if you want time to tell your friends what's happened."

Glinda nodded and cleaned herself up for class. In no time, she was out the door. She brought an extra handkerchief, just in case. She didn't bother with makeup this time.

In the courtyard were Boq, Crope, Tibbett, and Fiyero, sitting in a group talking in low voices. They didn't see her come in behind them.

"—gone for what? Five, six days? Someone's got to go look for them." Boq said. Fiyero nodded.

"That won't be necessary." Glinda said solemnly. She was almost trampled when they rushed over to hug her.

"Where have you been? We've been worried sick!" Boq asked her.

"The Emerald City, but -"

"Where's Elphie?" Fiyero cut in. Glinda's heart sank. She really didn't want to explain this to Fiyero.

"Boys, I'm afraid I have some unfortunate news. Elphie didn't come back."

"What?" They exclaimed in unison.

"But why?" Asked Fiyero. The hurt in his expression was unbearable.

"Because of the Wizard. She's going to work against him, I think." She paused. "Fiyero, can I talk to you in private?"

He nodded and followed her to a table across the way.

"Elphie and I spoke before she left. She wanted me to make a few things clear to you."

_Oh, no… she left because I scared her… Damn it, Fiyero! Why can't you ever think before you act? Didn't you learn anything hanging around Elphie?_ "Yes?"

"She wants you to understand that you're NOT the reason that she left. I think you were the reason she didn't leave earlier." She looked seriously at him. His eyes seemed to flicker with a last trace of hope. "Now, you know that Elphaba isn't one to express her feelings, right?" She asked.

"Yeah. It gets so confusing…I don't know what's right or what's wrong."

"Well, listen closely then. She said, and I quote, 'Tell him I still love him and always will. Tell him I'm not leaving because of him'."

He sighed deeply. "Thanks for telling me this Glinda. It means a lot… I—I've got to go. I have a lot of thinking to do." He gave Glinda an awkward hug before stalking off.

Glinda returned to the rest of the group, who was still pondering Elphaba's disappearance. She sat down and listened to their thoughts, something that she rarely ever did. _Elphie must have rubbed off on me…_

As she left for her history class, she heard the group say a few words before parting themselves.

"I'll never understand it. I barely knew the girl and her disappearance has affected me. She has a gift of touching people's hearts, that one." Said Tibbett solemnly.

"Yeah. What are we going to do without her?" Crope mused.

Boq was distant. He cast a worried glance at Glinda as she walked away with heavy steps. _She's changed_, he thought. _She's not the bubbly, conceited Galinda that I was infatuated with at the beginning of the term. She's Glinda, a slowly mellowing, pacific woman. A woman that I can really love…_

Fiyero walked into the woods to the familiar weeping willow. _Elphaba's tree…_ The tree was very much like Elphaba in ways. The way she hid herself from the world with a veil sarcasm and green skin, much like the willow hid its center with its long wispy tendrils… The way that that veil opened ever so slightly in the presence of something powerful and unexpected, only to cover itself back up before you get a good look at what's inside. The strength they both possessed, even in the harshest of situations. But there was one big difference between the two. The willow wept in everyone's presence. It did what Elphaba would not: show weakness.

He wondered, if he could get to the Elphaba that was hiding beneath her façade, would he feel the same peace and protection he felt sitting under the willow? He sighed. _It's a little too late to be thinking about that. Odds are, you'll never see her again…_a cynical voice in his head told him. _But, she said that she loves you,_ another voice challenged. He was beginning to get a headache. He closed his eyes, rubbing his temples. "Don't think too hard. You might hurt yourself. We wouldn't want that, now would we Prince Arjiki?" Said a purely Elphaba voice in the back of his mind. He smiled slightly. _Of course not, Miss Sarcasm. Now, if you don't mind, I have some sulking to do,_ he answered mentally. _She'll never be completely gone. She'll always be that sardonic comment in your head, that book on Animals that you read because you wanted to impress her with an intelligent conversation, that almost invisible reflection in the window you see as you look out onto the fresh spring leaves. Just hang in there, Fiyero. And stop being so poetic. You'll start sounding like Crope._

**The Emerald City:**

Elphaba was in a mauntery. The Cloister of Saint Glinda. She had dragged herself and her bag almost out of the alley after being raped and beaten while the man was passed out, drunk. A maunt, Sister Doctor, as she was called, found her curled up in ball, shaking violently. Being a big woman, the maunt carried her along with her belongings to the church where she was well attended to, despite her skin color. She wouldn't talk to anyone in more than a few words, mostly "thank you"s. The maunts were kind, but quite nosy. They would ask her all sorts of questions before getting frustrated and leaving. But they told her what she needed to know. She wasn't pregnant (though she doubted she could bear children anyway) and she could leave when she wanted to. Tired of being a burden, she decided to leave in two days, giving her enough time to recover from the shock and trauma. She knew exactly where she would live. She heard the maunts talking to a patient about an old corn exchange in the slums. The owner had died, leaving it to nobody and it was there for the taking. Because of its surroundings and old architecture, nobody wanted it. Even the homeless kept away from it because of some superstition.

Before Elphaba left the mauntery, an old crone hobbled over to her, handing her a broom.

"Take this, child, for it is your destiny," The old woman cackled, revealing crooked rows of yellow teeth. "Beware of the company you keep, dearie. They might just kill you."

"Who are you?" Elphaba asked, taking the broom more out of politeness than anything else.

The crone cackled again. "It matters not! But if you please, call me Mother Yackle. Now, leave! You have greater things in store than talking to a senile woman as old as the earth."

"Greater things? What do you mean by that?"

The woman smiled wryly. "You'll find out in time, child. Now go!"

Elphaba nodded to her and walked back into the streets of Oz, a black hood pulled expertly over her face. She looked about, understandably paranoid. In the mauntery, the Sisters talked about how the Wizard was pursuing a criminal woman with green skin. They all knew that Elphaba had green skin, but weren't fooled by the Wizards lies, for religious reasons, no doubt. They took care of her, she thought, mostly to defy him.

She brought her gaze up to the Emerald City's skyline searching for a high tower in the slums that was the corn exchange. She spotted it and ducked into the dark, twisting alleyways. She forced herself to hobble and slouch as if she were an old woman. She didn't ever want a repeat of what happened before. She stopped when she saw some questionable graffiti on a crumbling brick wall. _Down with the Wizard!_ screamed the bright red paint. She touched the writing tentatively.

"So, what do you think of that?" Asked a young-sounding voice behind her. A woman, she noted.

"Why do you ask?" Elphaba said in a sharp voice, still examining the wall.

"Just wondering. The Resistance, no doubt the people who wrote that, is getting pretty radical. They're defending the Animals, planning riots, assassinations even." The girl stated.

"Good for them. Someone needs to do something about the Wizard. If they don't do anything, I will." Elphaba turned to face the speaker. The woman smiled, satisfied. Elphaba couldn't see her face other than her mouth, seeing as she was wearing a hood much like her own.

"Then welcome to the Resistance." She said quietly. "Follow me." Elphaba shrugged. The woman looked around hastily and traced the red painted letters with her finger. The wall opened to reveal a dark hall lined with torches. _This seems all too familiar_, Elphaba thought. She followed the woman to a dark room at the end of the tunnel.

"Master," She called. "Master! I have a new member for you!"

Elphaba squinted to see her surroundings. It was too dark. She heard footsteps around her.

"State your name." A new voice called. The voice was powerful and soft at the same time. A man's voice.

Elphaba cleared her throat. "El—"

"Not your real name. A codename that you wish to be addressed by," the voice called again. "And, don't make it stupid." It added.

Elphaba smirked. "Are you insulting me, _Master_?"

The voice laughed briefly. "I like this one. She has an edge, like someone _else_ that I know." He seemed to direct at the other woman. "Now, you're name please, Miss Spunk"

"Fae," she said simply.

"Fae." The voice confirmed. "Excellent. You remember how to get back in here if we call a meeting?"

"Sure." She said.

"Good. That will be all for now. I think we can expect great things from you." The Master said. "Just follow Naytala out. She can help you along."

Elphaba jumped as she felt someone grab her arm and start pulling her along. She followed, protesting a bit to being pulled along. They entered another alleyway and a hidden door shut behind them.

"Okay," Naytala said condescendingly. "Here's what's going to happen. I'm going to show you around and you're going to be quiet. Understand, _Fae_?"

"Sure, _Naytala_. But how about we make this easier and you just lead me to the abandoned corn exchange and leave me to it?" Elphaba sneered. Naytala stood there, her mouth agape.

"Something wrong?" Elphaba asked sarcastically. The girl closed her mouth again and began walking briskly. Elphaba followed behind. They reached the exchange and Naytala pulled out a key, seemingly from nowhere, to open the door.

"Where did you get that?" Elphaba asked. Naytala shrugged and proceeded to unlock the door. "Magic." Elphaba couldn't tell if she was being sarcastic or not. They walked up a flight of stairs and Naytala handed her the key.

"As of now, you're squatting. His _Ozness_ can't do anything to force you out, but technically you aren't allowed to be here." She said as-a-matter-of-factly.

"That hasn't stopped me yet." Elphaba said setting down her bags. She could see the other girl smirk in the bad lighting.

"Good to know. And welcome to the not-so-Emerald part of the City." She said as she walked out of the door, leaving Elphaba alone. "I'll be back later. We'll probably have a meeting later on."

Elphaba shrugged to herself and looked around. Dust covered everything. There was a cracked skylight and one other window. An ornate coffee table sat in the center of the one room. There were odd decorations hung about the walls, like an elephant skull with flowers sticking out of it, a claw of some sort, teeth, bones, and feathers. A fairly clean bedroll was set unceremoniously on the ground next to an old trunk. There was a stove, dishes, a table and three chairs in a far corner. _Well, Elphaba, this is home._

She set down the broom and began unpacking her few personal items, setting her clothes and blanket on top of the trunk. On the coffee table she set a green bottle that belonged to her mother, the Grimmerie, and a cracked, green-tinged, glass ornament that she used as a looking glass. She reached for the last item in her bag: her book on the Vinkus that had produced, on occasion, the colorful light shows and terrible dreams. She gritted her teeth. _Eventually I'll figure out what's behind this book_, she thought. _It's not as if there's anything else I can do with my free time._

She lazily flipped through the pages again, waiting for the bluish light to envelop the room. Almost at once, the spine of the book shimmered with liquid fire and brightened until Elphaba had to shield her eyes from the intensity. She dropped the book and moved backwards, tripping over the side of the bedroll and falling. She hit her head on the ground and passed out.

_The young girl with yellowish eyes traversed through an old city. She was perhaps 13 years of age. She stared at the ground as not to draw attention to herself. She carried a large bag, a cloak and two books, a large one and a small one. She stumbled down the street stealing glances at the food being sold in the markets. Suddenly she ran straight into someone. Her things scattered everywhere as she fell onto her back. She stared up at the plushy figure in front of her. It was a girl wearing the puffiest pink dress she'd ever seen. She had fair skin, a sign of wealth, and jewelry to prove it. _

"_Excuse me! Couldn't you see that I was walking here?" She stared down her nose at the girl on the ground, and then gaped. "Y-you're eyes! They're -" The girl on the ground looked down immediately._

_A small crowd of other girls circled around her to see what the fuss was about. "Her—no, _its_ eyes! They're like the devil!" The girl in the pink dress exclaimed. The rest of the girls gasped. They each had poofy, different colored dresses on. The one in a purple dress spoke. _

"_Are you infected?" _

_A girl in a yellow dress turned to her frantically. "What if it's contagious? We'll catch it if we don't get away!" The girls shrieked all together and ran off, except for one. _

_A girl in a blue dress walked over to her and picked up her things, handing them to her and offering a hand to get up. _

"_Thanks," she said, almost inaudibly. _

"_It was nothing." The other girl replied. "They're jerks. They don't take time to consider other people's feelings." The girl stared at her. "Oh! Where are my manners?" She squeaked. She offered her hand again. "My name is Lurline. You are…?" _

"_Kumbricia," She replied, shaking Lurline's hand._

Suddenly, everything started trembling. Elphaba opened her eyes to see Naytala, with her hood still up, shaking her awake.

"What happened to you?" Naytala snapped at her. "I'm gone for only a few hours and you manage to knock yourself unconscious!" She stood up and brushed off her clothes. "You look terrible. In this bad lighting, you look practically green."

Elphaba smirked. "Yeah, well…" She picked herself up and walked over to the Vinkus book to close it. Naytala watched her carefully.

"What's that?" She asked her.

"A book. Ever seen one before?" Elphaba said sarcastically.

Naytala walked straight over and stared at the cover. "Where did you get this?" She asked, almost urgently.

Elphaba raised her eyebrows at the visitor. "I found it , I think, almost thirteen years ago. Why do you ask?"

Naytala ignored her. "What's it about?"

"I don't know. I'm still trying to figure that out. It's mostly on the Vinkus and their religious beliefs." She replied, a bit irritated by all of the questions.

Naytala looked as if she were going to touch the cover, and then stopped short. She tore her attention away from the book. "Fine. Well, we have a meeting for the Resistance to go to now." She said distractedly. "That is, if you're up to it."

"Let's go."

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**SO. i think everyone has gotten the point that i like reviews. as always, suggestions, comments, and questions are welcome. coughcough**_review_**coughcough. **

**as for the anatomy of the name naytala (for those who might be interested), i can't tell you right now. it'll give stuff away. you might figure it out though.**


	11. Mirror, Mirror

_hi peoples! erm... as for the not updating, i'm REALLY sorry. camp, ya know... well, i do believe that it's time for another disclaimer... i, unfortunately do not own any of these characters. Except for Naytala and the mysterious Master. sigh_

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**Shiz:**

Glinda could barely take it. Madame Morrible had forced her to meet in her office along with a brooding Nessarose. She recalled the terrible meeting:

"I have received a letter from the Wizard, Miss Arduenna, concerning your… disappearance." She had said. "It is strictly against school rules to go off campus without a permit signed by me, but seeing as how the Wizard has turned all of his attention to you as his assistant, and eventual successor, I will let this slide. But only once." She paused. "Now, I understand that the elder Thropp sister, how might I say this… flew off the handle? It is my analysis that Miss Elphaba is certifiably insane due to her manner of protest to the Wizard's wonderful regime policies. The Wizard's people are looking for her, not to hurt her or arrest her, no. However, since you two seem to know her best, I believe that you will be key in the investigation."

"And what, may I ask, will the Wizard's men do with Elphaba once they have her if they aren't going to detain her.?" Glinda inquired smoothly, her paranoia beating out the trust she once had for the government.

"I truthfully do not know. I've been told to send word to everyone that Miss Elphaba is crazy and that nothing she says should be taken to mind or believed at all. Now. Do you girls have any ideas on where Elphaba might be?" She directed her Carp-like gaze toward Glinda.

"I'm afraid not" Glinda responded, refusing to rat out her best friend. Nessa nodded in agreement.

Morrible sighed dramatically. She looked like she was gulping for air. "Very well. If you DO remember anything that might help the Wizard's investigation, just stop by my office, anytime. You are dismissed."

Even the Headmistress, who only a few weeks ago had been praising Elphaba, was calling her insane. _But she's not!_ Glinda thought furiously. _If anything, she's more clearheaded than any of us._ Nessa had even believed the propaganda. She refused to listen to any conversation that had to do with Elphaba.

"She's your sister!" Glinda had exclaimed once. Nessa looked at her darkly.

"I have no _sister_." She replied. "A sister wouldn't abandon the other to gallivant about the Emerald City." She wheeled her self away and wouldn't speak to Glinda for the next few days, which suited her just fine.

The once people-loving Glinda spent her time away from people, shut away in her room. Every so often her old friends Milla and Shen-shen would try to pry her from her books and homework, but with no avail. People were beginning to worry about her and the campus nurse suggested that she be put into therapy. She refused to go.

There was a knock on the door. Glinda sighed heavily, slamming her textbook on the desk. She lumbered toward the door.

"Boq! What a surprise." She stared at the Munchkin boy in the doorway. He was wearing a simple white shirt and nice pants.

"Well, I've been worried about you." He said truly concerned. "We all have. You haven't been out to lunch with us almost since you got back from…" He stopped. He knew that the Emerald City was a tender spot for Glinda.

"Oh, don't worry about me. I'm fine." She said quickly. Boq looked unconvinced.

"So, are you doing anything this afternoon?" He asked. There was an adorable hopefulness in his sparkling blue eyes. Glinda couldn't help but smile. Thinking back, this was the first unforced smile she had on her face since Elphaba had gone.

"No, actually." She replied. "Why do you ask?" Boq smiled back at her.

"You owe me a date." He pulled a small bouquet of pink roses from behind his back and handed them to her. Glinda could feel her heart melting in her chest, and a sappy grin forming on her face.

"Boq, you shouldn't have!" She squeaked.

_There's the Glinda I know and miss._ Boq thought to himself.

"Oh! Come in, come in." She said, leading him into the room. "I'll be back in a minute"

Boq watched her disappear into another room. He sat down on a bed and looked around. He could see an obvious difference between two halves of the room. The side he was on was simple, neat, and fairly empty. The other side was a carnival of colors, shapes, and small messes. He suddenly found himself feeling very sorry for Glinda. It was easier for the rest of them to get used to Elphaba's disappearance, but Glinda had to deal with it all of the time. Every time she was in class, and every time she was in her dorm there were reminders that the quirky green girl they'd come to love was gone.

Glinda rushed back into the room. She froze when she saw Boq sitting on the plain, unused bed.

"Stand up!" She said urgently. Boq stared at her confused. "Quickly! Stand up!" She repeated rushing towards the bed. Boq jumped up and continued to stare at her. She went into a frenzy over the sheets, making sure there were no wrinkles. She was muttering desperately under her breath about how Elphaba always had her bed made perfectly.

"Glinda?" He said quietly, resting a hand on her shoulder. "Glinda, stop. You'll upset yourself more."

She turned to him, her blue eyes wide with distress. He sat her down on her own bed and knelt before her, taking her hands.

"Glinda, this is what I'm talking about. You're worrying me and it really hurts to see you like this." He paused. "I know that there's nothing I can do to replace Elphie, but is there anything I can do to make you feel better?"

Glinda closed her eyes. " I want to feel needed" She whispered. She opened her eyes again to find Boq sitting next to her. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to dump my problems on you, I just—"

"Shh. I know." He said. He brushed a strand of hair out of her face and kissed her.

**The Emerald City:**

Elphaba and Naytala trekked back to the hidden Resistance headquarters. It was getting dark and the streets were bare. Both were still wearing their dark hoods. Elphaba tried to glance under the hood of the other girl with no avail. She was surprised that Naytala could even see with the hood over her eyes.

"How can you see like that?" Elphaba asked breaking the silence. Naytala shrugged.

"I could ask the same of you." She said pointedly. She twisted her mouth, as if she were confused. "Are you sure you're up to this initiation? You look sick."

"I'm perfectly fine."

"Well, if you feel the need to vomit, do me a favor and turn the other way" Naytala said callously. Elphaba ground her teeth. _These green jokes are really getting old,_ she thought to herself. _And she doesn't even know I'm actually green._

They reached the grafittied wall and opened the hidden door. Instead of being pitch dark like their earlier visit, the lights were brighter, but cast long, dark shadows everywhere. There were groups of people clustered in the hall, slowly lumbering toward the main room.

"If you want that hood to be of some use, keep your head down" Naytala hissed at Elphaba. Elphaba did as she was advised and pulled her hood lower over her face.

"What" Elphaba began, "Exactly is going on here?"

"Initiation."

"Hazing?"

"No. Just a few tests." Naytala answered.

"Hazing." Elphaba repeated.

"Call it what you want, but you still have to go through with it." She said coldly. "Now , do you see the man at the podium? Go talk to him."

"Is he the 'Master'?" Elphaba asked. Naytala didn't answer. She gently pushed Elphaba toward the podium and disappeared into the crowd. Before stepping up to the podium, Elphaba looked around. The 'room' wasn't much of a room at all. It was more of a large cave. Even the so-called podium was carved from stone. Behind it was a flag. It resembled the Emerald City regal flags, but instead of having a green background, there was a black one, and instead of having a red cross, there was a green one.

"Excuse me" A voice called behind her. "Are you Fae?"

She turned around to face the figure swathed in burgundy robes. She recognized the voice as the mysterious 'Master'. She nodded.

"Very good then. I assume that you want to know what is going to happen tonight." He said. She waited for him to continue. "We usually have a series of tests that we have new members complete before they are accepted as part of the Resistance, but seeing as our organization has become a bit busy and short-handed in the past few weeks, you will only have one. This test must be completed in two weeks. Have you heard the news of the green woman who stole the Wizard's spell book, the Grimmerie?"

"Who hasn't?"

"Right. Find her." He said firmly. "The last we heard, she was still hanging around the Emerald City. Check around the slums. Do you think that you can handle this?"

"It's possible" She chose her words carefully. "When I do find her, what should I do?" She felt odd talking about herself in the third person, but she didn't want to turn herself into the group before finding out what they wanted with her.

"Bring her here. She could be valuable to our cause. Naytala will be assisting you, but she has her own project to attend to. If you have any other questions, find her. You may leave"

She nodded and turned to leave. This was going to be a bit difficult. She didn't bother looking for Naytala. _If she wants to find me, she can just barge into my house again._ She glanced quickly around at the other members of the Resistance. She couldn't see any faces. Just cloaks, hoods, scarves, and the occasional mask.

Out of the corner of her eye, she thought she saw a trace of blue diamonds. She whipped around, scoring odd looks (or what seemed like them) from the disguised figures. There were no diamonds in sight. _Ugh! Could this get any harder for me?_ She thought with angst. She walked briskly out of the cave, back into the cold, grey streets. She hobbled deliberately back to the corn exchange. She slammed the door behind her and let out a heavy sigh.

"What in Oz's name do these people want with me? First the Wizard turns out to be a dictatorial bastard who more than likely wants me dead for taking some book, now a cultish anarchist group is looking for me to do who knows what." She closed her eyes tightly and pressed her fists to her forehead. _What have I gotten myself into?_ She heard a noise behind the door and froze.

"Who's there?" She demanded in a low voice, walking briskly to the door, ready to swing it open wide.

"The better question is, who's in there?" Naytala's voice answered, kicking the door open. She looked ready to pounce on someone. "Fae?" She asked slowly.

"Who else?" Elphaba snapped. "Now, was that really necessary, putting a crack in my door?"

Naytala ignored her. "I came to discuss your project, but from what I heard, it sounds like you already completed it. Now where is she?"

"Who?" Elphaba tried to cover.

"The green girl. Are you slow?" Naytala began searching the room.

"There's no one else here." Elphaba assured her.

"That's what you say." She continued to turn the place upside down searching for 'the green girl'. She was about to turn over the coffee table, on top of which were Elphaba's most prized possessions.

"STOP!" Elphaba yelled. Naytala turned and stared at her. A malicious smile played across her lips.

"Tell me where she is and I will"

Elphaba took in a deep breath. "On one condition: You don't turn her in until she knows exactly what the Resistance wants with her and what they'll do with her if she joins."

Naytala glared at her. "Fine."

"Promise it"

"I promise already!" She said irritated.

Elphaba sighed and removed her hood. Naytala didn't react.

"Can't you see?" Elphaba exclaimed.

"You took off your hood. Is that supposed to mean something?" She replied.

"Take a closer look."

Naytala move forward slightly and frowned. She muttered something to herself and took off her own hood. Her eyes widened and she gasped.

"You? The whole time…shit" Her eyes flashed yellowish even in the dark room. They seemed to have their own little glow to them. Elphaba squinted at her. _There's something strange about her eyes…_ She noted. _Something familiar._

Naytala caught her staring and threw her hood back on. "What?" She snapped. She sighed. "We'll talk about your dilemma tomorrow. But I'm telling you, there isn't much that the group wants from you but to help overthrow the Wizard. It's mostly the book that we want to see."

"What's so important about the book?"

"Well… We don't quite know. That's why we need to see it." She replied slowly. "But there are stories about the Grimmerie. They say that it holds countless ancient spells. The problem is, it's protected by magic. Only a few people can read it."

"What if no one can read it?"

"Ye of little faith…" Naytala smirked. "We'll find someone."

Elphaba looked at her questioningly.

"Don't worry about it now. We'll have a nice long conversation about everything tomorrow." She said as she let herself out the door.

As Elphaba heard the outside door close, she flopped down on her bedroll. She waited for drowsiness to take over, but it didn't. She cast a sidelong glance at the coffee table and the things on it. _I'm not going to let her use those as a threat again…_ She got up and gathered everything in her arms, setting them in front of the trunk beside the bedroll. Carefully, she opened the trunk. Inside there were a few scarves. She picked up a scarf, feeling the softness of the fabric, seeing the beautiful simplicity of it. She wrapped the scarves carefully around her mother's little green bottle, so it wouldn't break or crack, and placed it in the trunk. Beside that, she put the books, both the Grimmerie and 'Kumbricia's book' (as she had come to call it). She looked at the last item remaining. The looking glass from Turtle Heart.

She recalled gazing into it as a child for hours at a time. It dawned on her that she didn't remember why it intrigued her so, since she'd shut it away the day Turtle Heart was killed. Her reflection had always bothered her, so, what did she find so captivating in THIS looking glass? She sat upon her bedroll, gazing into the lightly scratched, smudged surface. Her reflection looked back at her, almost scrutinizing. Her dark hair was pulled into a loose braid that fell over her shoulder, and worry lines were forming on her young face. Her sharp nose fit her chiseled face gracefully. She scoffed. _Perhaps if I were of normal color, I might actually look okay._ She brought her gaze up until she was looking straight into her own eyes. Determination, confusion, and blankness. That's what was there, but what she saw was a stupid girl who ran away from a life full of opportunities to live in the slums working for an anarchist group. _Damn it. I wish I knew what's been happening at Shiz without me._

Slowly, the shadows in the reflection began to take over the rest of the picture. Another picture formed in its place. There was Glinda, sitting at her desk, mumbling to herself while staring intently at a book. Was she…studying? _There must be some mistake._ Elphaba thought to herself. _Glinda doesn't study. _She tried to fit the pieces together._ Maybe that's why I loved this mirror so much. It showed me what I wanted to see._ _So maybe…hmm. Boq._ She thought, hoping that another image would appear. It did. She saw her Munchkin friend lying lazily on a bed, talking to an unseen person. She squinted. _That's Glinda's bed._ She realized. The frame zoomed out to reveal the two images she just saw simultaneously._ Not in a million years could that happen. Only in one of my crazy warped dreams would Glinda let Boq into her room AND be studying at the same time. _She smirked. She was beginning to like this little game. She decided that she'd 'check up' on people at Shiz to see what this 'magic' mirror would conjure up to ease her mind. _Um…_She thought for a moment, the grinned almost maliciously. _Avaric. _The picture rearranged itself so that she saw Avaric sitting at one of the tables in the courtyard surrounded by a group of girls that Elphaba had labeled as 'easy', early on in the year. _Well that wasn't as entertaining as I thought it would be. That's just to be expected of Avaric…Oh well, Nessarose._ The picture changed again. She saw Nessa in her wheelchair, being pushed by Nanny. They were in front of the only church within walking distance of Shiz. Elphaba rolled her eyes at this. _Little Nessarose, ever Frex's religious puppet._ She paused in her thinking. _Fiyero._ Once again, the images faded out to reveal another. She saw him sitting at a desk, a frustrated look on his face. He crinkled the sheet of paper in front of him into a ball and threw it over his shoulder. Elphaba smiled. He slammed his pencil on the table with an exasperated sigh. He reached into a drawer and pulled something out, just as the picture started to fade back to her own reflection.

Elphaba found herself disappointed when the looking glass stopped showing the little movies of her friends. She tucked the small mirror into her cloak. She noticed the bright moon peeking through the skylight. She heard the clock tower chime the hour. Two in the morning. Had she really been up that long staring at Turtle Heart's trinket? She sighed, laying her head down upon the pillow on the bed. She fell asleep almost immediately, dreaming of her friends back at school.

* * *

_Astronomically-sized thank yous go to Annibelle White, Tristessa the Crazy Emo of the South, and Azulah Lilavati Wallace (but not so much to her, since she didn't REALLY read) for looking over this before I posted. I owe you! _

_I'd also like to thank the people who actually review, because reviews make me happy, even if they're criticism (well, constructive)_


	12. Cages

_yay! i finisheda chapter! victory dance ahem... anyway..._

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* * *

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**Shiz:**

_Fiyero:_

Fiyero sat at his desk, thinking. He stared down at the letter before him.

_Elphaba,_

_Why did you have to go? We all miss you here. I miss you… Everything's changed now that you've left. Nessa won't talk about you, Crope and Tibbett just aren't themselves (you know, cross-dressing and playing cruel tricks on people), Glinda started applying herself, and she's going out with Boq. Do you hear that? GLINDA IS GOING OUT WITH BOQ , and you're not here to mock them with the rest of us. Okay… this next part is going to be hard. Elphaba… I don't think you understand how much I miss you. There's no escaping my feelings for you. _

_Damn it… now it's getting corny. How can I write this without sounding like a complete idiot to you? Oh well…You'll never read this anyway._

He balled up the letter and threw it over his shoulder, then threw his pencil down on his desk. He slumped down in his chair, closing his eyes and making a face in frustration. He really did care for Elphaba. He felt as if he couldn't live happily without her. He opened his eyes and stared at his desk drawer. He opened it carefully and pulled out the charred paper that Elphaba had given him that day under the willow. Suddenly, he looked around. He felt as if he were being watched… He shrugged to himself and stared back down at the paper.

_Elphaba loves Fiyero… Elphaba loves Fiyero… Elphaba loves Fiyero…_

The words played in his head, over and over. _Damn it, Fiyero. You can't keep living like this._

All of a sudden, he had an idea. He put the paper gently back into his drawer, and ran to Shiz's main office building, past Avaric, who was surrounded by a crowd of trashy girls.

_Boq and Glinda:_

Boq lay upon Glinda's bed as she did her Literature homework at her desk. He studied the spackled pattern on the ceiling to keep himself entertained.

"Ughh!" Glinda exclaimed. She furrowed her brow and flipped furiously through the pages of _'of Mice and men'_. "This is the most terrible book that I've EVER encountrified."

"What makes you say that?" Boq asked as he turned to look at her.

"They are completely understating the intelligence of Mice compared to humans. I mean, they make them look worse than the big oaf of a man, What's-His-Name!"

Boq laughed. "Who are you, and what did you do with Glinda? The real Glinda wouldn't even touch the book, let alone analyze it."

"Well, I guess analyzing comes with actually reading the book." She shrugged.

"So, where does actually reading the book come from?" Boq asked, teasingly.

Glinda threw a glance to the empty half of the room and immersed herself back into her homework.

"Oh. Sorry." Boq mumbled. He stood and stretched out his legs, walking to the window. He squinted.

"What the…?"

Glinda turned to look at him. "What is it?"

Boq began to laugh. "Fiyero. He's running through the campus like a madman! And damn he's fast…"

"What?" Glinda exclaimed. She jumped up and rushed to the window. Sure enough, there was their favorite Winkie, dashing across the grounds towards the main hall.

"What is he doing?" Glinda giggled as Boq casually put an arm around her.

"I have no idea." He replied, shaking his head.

"Should we go after him?" Glinda tilted her head up to look at him.

"Nah." Boq waved his hand dismissively. "He needs the exercise. He's been keeping himself cooped up in his dorm lately. Fresh air will do him some good."

He was about to pull Glinda into a kiss, but the door opened before he could act. In rolled Nessarose followed by Nanny. Glinda wrenched away from Boq as gently as she could.

"Oh! Nessa. Where've you been today?" She asked politely. Nessa gave her a measuring look.

"It's Sunday, Glinda. You know that I always go to church on Sunday." She replied coldly. "Do you mind"-she gestured at Boq-"I have a bit of a headache."

Boq shifted uncomfortably. "Oh, sorry." He mumbled. "I guess I'll be going now. Have a nice day and feel better Miss Nessarose, Nanny." He looked at Glinda to follow him out, which she did. She closed the door behind them after wishing Nessa well, and bidding hello and goodbye to Nanny.

"I'm so sorry." Glinda began. "I didn't think that she had the nerve to be so rude."

Boq half-smiled. "It's okay. Really."

"Still, I feel bad that she treated you so badly."

"It's fine. No big deal." He draped an arm around her shoulders and they began to walk out of the dorm.

"What should we do now?" Glinda asked. "I forgot my homework in the room…"

"Do you want to go see what Fiyero was up to?" Boq suggested. "I think he went to the main hall…"

"Let's go!" Glinda grabbed him by the elbow and dragged him along.

They walked into the hall just a Fiyero stepped out of Madame Morrible's office. He stopped when he saw them and waved, smiling.

"Hey!" He called to them. "What're you two doing here?"

"Well, we saw you sprinting across the greens to get here, so we figured that we'd come and see what was so important that you had to run to get here." Boq answered. He looked curiously at the tribal boy, who was now blushing at the blunt description of his earlier actions.

"I came to adjust my schedule." He said honestly. "I'm filling it up. Completely."

"Why?" Glinda inquired. "I thought you liked having only two classes a day." Boq nodded in agreement. "And having a life" He added.

"I did. But something's been bothering me lately and I want to resolve it before it's too late."

"What are you talking about, and how will fixing your schedule do anything to help?" Asked Boq, who was as confused as ever.

"I can graduate at the end of this year." Fiyero explained. "Then I can go deal with my-erm- problem."

Both Glinda and Boq raised their eyebrows at him. He could see the question they were asking in their minds: 'What problem?'

"Don't worry about it." He said hastily. "I'll explain before too long. I've gotta go. I need to get supplies for my extra classes tomorrow."

He dashed out of the hall, leaving the couple, still confused, before they could ask any more questions.

**The Emerald City:**

Elphaba woke early enough to see the sun rise over the Emerald City. The sky was tinged with awesome shades of orange and pink, contrasting with the greenness of the city. She gazed dreamily at the array of colors reflecting off of the roofs of the sparkling city. A thump broke her concentration. She looked around, but no one was there.

"Naytala?" She called. "Is that you?" No answer. She walked softly over to her cracked door and pulled it open. "Hello?" She tried again. She stepped warily out of the door. Suddenly, a streak of brown brushed past her. She spun around to face the intruder. Her eyes darted across the room. A brown, tabby cat sat calmly in the center of the room cleaning itself. Elphaba relaxed. _Paranoid over a cat… that's mature._ She thought.

"What are you doing here?" She asked softly. She walked slowly toward the animal—or was it an Animal?- and knelt down. "Can you talk? What's your name?"

The cat looked around the room, it's tail flicking nervously, then looked Elphaba straight in the eyes.

"I-I'm Malky." He whispered. He leaned in closer. "Is it safe here?"

"Yes. Why? What's going on?" She asked urgently.

"It's the Wizard. He's made another law against the animals. All of us- the Animals- we…"

"Go on" Elphaba urged. "I'm here to help." She put a comforting hand behind Malky's head. He sighed heavily before continuing.

"Have you heard of this new invention? The Cage?"

Elphaba's eyes widened. "No! He can't be-- I thought-- but he can't have had enough time!"

"Something changed. It must have. He's starting with every animal in the Emerald City, then extending outward. You're with the Resistance. You have to help us! Please!"

Elphaba opened her mouth to reassure him that she would do all she could to help, but the door opened at that moment, and he darted into a corner.

Naytala sighed as she trod into the room. "Okay. Time to talk." She tossed her cloak, making it land on the door corner.

"Not now!" Elphaba hissed at her. Naytala threw her a questioning look.

"We have a guest." She said more nicely. "Come on. She's okay. She's on our side."

Malky stepped from the shadows and eyed Naytala, who eyed him back.

"You're talking to a cat?"

"Cat." Elphaba corrected. "With a capital 'C'. It seems our Wonderful Wizard has decided to move in smaller steps, so he can work his plan faster."

"When did this happen?" Naytala put a hand to her mouth.

"Last night. We have a few spies in the castle." He explained. "The Mice, they listened in on a meeting between the Wizard, his Press Secretary, and the Captain of the Guard."

"These spies" Elphaba started. "They've been tracking me, haven't they?"

"Tracking, in the best sense." Malky replied, with a small grin. "It's not everyday that a green girl stomps out on the Wizard after voicing- in his presence- how unjust the Animal Banns are. We figured that it would be in the best interest of the Animals' future to keep watch on you."

Elphaba rolled her eyes and turned to Naytala.

"So, when do you go running off to tell _Master_ the vile news?"

"Now." Naytala responded. "And both of you are coming with me."

Elphaba and Malky stared at her in shock.

"But—I…I'm—" Elphaba sputtered.

"Green. Yes. Yes, I can see that." Naytala finished. "And you're bound to have to reveal that to Master anyway. The sooner the better, right?"

Elphaba glared at her, resisting the urge to hit her. Hard.

"But I" Malky said, "am still wanted by the Wizard. Along with the rest of the Animals in the Emerald City! I can't go!"

"We'll hide you somehow. Or even better, pretend you're a cat. Now come! Both of you!" Naytala ordered. Elphaba opened her mouth to protest.

"You, don't even start with me. I, for one, know that I can hold the green thing over your head right now. And I will." Naytala said sharply.

Elphaba glared at her again, her mouth twitching with anger. Naytala met her gaze just as intensely. Malky's ears twitched with anticipation, unable to deal with the tension.

"Please. Don't fight now!" Malky insisted. "There's no time!"

Naytala kept her stare on Elphaba for another moment before turning to Malky.

"He's right." She admitted quietly. "Come on. You can wear your hood, Fae."

Elphaba nodded briefly, grabbing her cloak.

"Let's go then."

The three embarked to the Resistance headquarters with Malky hidden in the folds of Elphaba's cloak. The streets were filled with the clamoring of people trying to get to work on time. Looking more closely, Elphaba saw many more animals (quite possibly Animals) hidden in the crowd than normal. _Hiding from the Wizard, no doubt._ She thought to herself.

The others seemed to notice also. Malky was squirming uncomfortably in Elphaba's arms and Naytala was beginning to walk faster. She leaned in closer to Elphaba.

"Get to the side of the alley." She whispered. "Where there aren't many people, or things to run into."

Elphaba nodded, to show that she heard, and did as she was told. They stopped, upon Naytala's silent request. She whispered something under her breath and her fingers began to glow in Elphaba's magical sight. Naytala touched Malky, then Elphaba, then herself. Elphaba looked at Malky and gasped. He seemed to be disintegrating before her eyes, and then he was gone. She could still feel his weight in her arms. She continued to stare down into her seemingly empty arms. The tips of her fingers were beginning to disappear, then her palms, her sleeved arms… She too, became invisible.

"Naytala!" She whispered. "What the _hell_ are you doing?"

She didn't respond. Elphaba used her Sight to focus in on the magic that consumed her. She could now see the outline of her form and Malky's in a blue-green light. The color of Naytala's magic. She turned her gaze to the crowd, and found Naytala just a few feet away. She shifted the light-form Malky into one arm, and caught up with Naytala.

"Wait next time" Elphaba muttered. She heard Naytala sigh, annoyed. They remained silent for the rest of the journey to the headquarters. Naytala traced the red grafitti letters on the wall, opening the door. They slipped inside. Naytala stopped them once more and lifted the Invisibility spell. Elphaba gave her a wayward glance.

"How do you know that spell?" She asked.

"Later." Naytala said, waving the question away. "We have things to take care of."

They walked into the cave that was the main meeting room. It was dark and quiet.

"Master!" Naytala called. The word bounced off of the walls for a few moments before being interrupted by footsteps.

"Who's calling me?" A voice rang out. "This had better be important. I don't need any more distractions."

He came into view, holding an oil lamp. He raised it up to see their faces. Or, rather, what he could see of them.

"Naytala. Fae." He acknowledged. "And…?" He looked down at the brown cat at their feet. Malky straightened himself up.

"Malky." He announced.

Elphaba could have sworn that the Master's eyes widened, but she couldn't see his eyes or face very clearly.

"A Cat!" He exclaimed excitedly. Elphaba rolled her eyes.

"You're pretty sharp aren't you?"

He glared at her. "Fine. What are you here for?"

Naytala stepped forward. "It's the Wizard. He's put his dreadful plans into action early."

"What!"

Malky nodded his head. "It's true. The Mice heard him talking to his Press Secretary and Guard Captain." He repeated for the Master. "He's trying to round up all of the Animals in the Emerald City. Once he gets all of us and make sure that every last one of us is turned into an animal, he'll expand."

The Master began muttering to himself nervously, rubbing his forehead. For a while, he seemed completely unaware that Naytala, Elphaba, and Malky were still in the room.

"Call a meeting." Elphaba said, cutting into his thoughts. He looked up, surprised.

"Yes, yes. A meeting." He said .His once rich and powerful voice sounded older. Meek.

He rubbed his eyes and squared his shoulders, regaining composure.

"Naytala, make sure that all of the other members know that there is a mandatory meeting tonight. We'll be training and working harder than we have in the last 5 years put together." He warned. "And Malky? Gather your Animal friends if you can. The more conspicuous, you know, like Leopards, can be hidden down here for safety and more common ones, like you, can be used as spies."

Malky set his brow determinedly and nodded sharply, like a salute.

"And Fae? You work as hard as humanly possible to find the green one."

"She wants to know what you want her for." Naytala cut in. "And I think she has right to know."

Master threw a curious glance at Naytala then shifted it over to Elphaba.

"She" He began, "Could be the answer to our prayers, so to speak. From what we've heard, she's very well educated, determined, and a rebel. As proved by her earlier actions. She obviously cares enough for the Animals to run out on her little friend and the Wizard. With his prized book, might I add." He smirked before continuing. "Speaking of the book, if we can get our hands on that, we might be able to stop the Wizard for good. It's a gigantic spell book. It's bound to have something that we can use against the Wizard."

"You're getting off topic." Elphaba pointed out. "What do you want her for?"

He scowled. "If we could get her to join the Resistance, she'd be the only one that's been inside of the Emerald Palace. The rest of us have been turned away by the guards for wanting an 'appointment with the Wizard'. We need someone who knows the rough layout of the palace. Even if it's a few halls, the smallest bit helps. She'd probably become our tactics advisor. Happy?"

"Just flattered." Elphaba answered. Naytala nudged her and gave her a look.

"Fine!" Elphaba exclaimed. "I'll tell him tonight, alright?"

Naytala smiled, satisfied.

"We're done here for now. See you tonight." Naytala said to the Master with mock happiness. She patted his cheek and led Malky and Elphaba out of the headquarters, leaving the Master dazed and confused.

They stepped into the streets, where the sun was shining brightly. Malky pranced off to find the Animals, leaving Naytala and Elphaba alone.

"Go back to the exchange." Naytala ordered. "I'll be back a bit before the meeting and we'll talk about your little secret then. Got it?"

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Just knock before you come in, like a normal human."

"I knocked before." Naytala retorted.

"Yeah. With your foot, through my door."

"Yeah, yeah." She said dismissively. "Go home. I have work to do."

Elphaba obliged, buying herself a few pastries on the way back. Her first actual meal in a few days. She sat at her table and picked at her meal, saving the rest for later.

She looked around, bored, and realized how little she had to do for the rest of the afternoon. To keep herself occupied, she cleaned the thick coat of dust off of everything until only the floor was left. She scanned the room for something to clean the floor with. Her eyes fell on the broom in the corner. The one that the old crone had given her.

* * *

_yeah, so once again, thanks to tristessa the crazy emo, annibelle white, and lorelei (ireland lorelei)._


	13. Plans

_To keep herself occupied, she cleaned the thick coat of dust off of everything until only the floor was left. She scanned the room for something to clean the floor with. Her eyes fell on the broom in the corner. The one that the old crone had given her._

What was it that the lady had said to her?

"_Take this, for it is your destiny…. Beware the company you keep… they just might kill you"_

But what did that mean? That she was meant to be some sort of maid in a bad household? Elphaba smirked at the thought as she grabbed the broom from out of its corner. _It was probably just one of the mental patients at the mauntry making mindless 'revelations'. _Elphaba thought to herself.

Just as she was about to sweep the broom across the floor, it seemed to tug away from her. Elphaba looked at the broom for a moment and shrugged. She tried again. This time, the broom wrenched from her grasp and set itself gently against the wall. Elphaba stared in shock. _Perhaps it's just weighted oddly…_She tried to convince herself. She marched over to the broom, gritting her teeth.

"C'mere you!" She growled. To her surprise, the broom obeyed, planting itself in her outstretched hand.

"Enchanted broom? For what?" She asked aloud. As if to answer her, the broom levitated, taking her with it. It took a moment for her to realize that her feet weren't touching the ground anymore.

"Sweet Oz," she whispered under her breath. _The possibilities…_She thought.

"If you would be so kind, I'd appreciate if you put me down now." She told the broom. It made a loop around the room before dumping her (not exactly gently) on the bedroll and putting itself back in the corner.

"Oh, a funny one, are you?"

The broom shook- with amusement?- in the corner.

"Yeah, laugh it up while you can. You might _accidentally_ tumble into the stove." Elphaba said with a smile. The broom stopped shaking. "That's better."

She sighed. She doubted that she could get the enchanted broom to sweep the floor. She'd have to get a more obedient broom. She shook her head.

Bored once more, she decided to take another look at Kumbricia's Book; she hadn't paid it much mind lately. She reached for the old trunk and unlatched it. It sprung open and she picked up the old book. At this point, she knew what she had to do to get it to 'work its magic'. She turned to the third page.

She didn't flinch as the blue-green light consumed her, and she wasn't surprised when she found herself falling into darkness. After a few moments, she wasn't in control of herself anymore.

_Kumbricia, the yellow-eyed girl, sat nervously in a large stable. Her eyes darted every which way. A moment later, the large barn door slid open, revealing the girl Lurline holding a sack. She walked in and, using all of her effort, closed the door behind her. She wiped her forehead and set the bag down before Kumbricia._

"_What's this?" Asked Kumbricia in small, but clear voice._

"_Food." Lurline responded a she set out the contents of the bag._

_Kumbricia looked shocked. "T-thank you"_

_Lurline just shrugged. "You can stay here if you want."_

_Kumbricia furrowed her brow. "In the stable?"_

"_No, silly! In the estates! I mean, sure, we have to find a excuse for you to stay, but - " She gasped as if she'd just come up with a brilliant idea. "Do you like horses?"_

"_They're alright…"_

"_Great! I remember my parents talking about having to get a new stable-hand. Apparently the old one didn't get along very well with Lymbret. That's our biggest stallion. He's quite moody and possessive of his herd." She explained. "You could fill the space. They're desperate. They'll hire anyone willing to work with Lymbret."_

"_You're sure they'd hire a girl to work on the stables?"_

_Lurline thought for a moment. "Now that you mention it… probably not. Maybe you could work as a maid instead…no, we have plenty of those…Or you could cut your hair and disguise yourself as a boy." She suggested. "You'd be paid and fed, get a nice room in the house, and get lessons with me and the other children. My parents want everyone here educated, not just us nobles." _

_Kumbricia bit her lip and looked helplessly at a lock of her wavy, brown hair. "Okay. I guess a haircut is a fair price for a job, home, and education…"_

_Lurline squealed with excitement. "Yay! I'll have a friend within the estates that isn't a conceited pain-in-the-rump."_

_Kumbricia smiled behind the biscuit she was nibbling. _A friend would be nice…_ She thought._

Elphaba woke from her dream. She found herself leaning against the trunk. She shielded her eyes. The sun was high in the sky, as it normally was in the late afternoon. She stretched her limbs, which were stiff from her awkward sleeping position against the trunk, but didn't move from her spot on the ground. After all, she'd finished her chores for the day _and_ looked into another dream from the book. What else was there to do but laze around and wait for the dreaded meeting?

Elphaba heard a rustling in the corner. The broom was shaking again.

"What do you want?"

The broom zipped across the room, back and forth, looping about before stopping dead in front of Elphaba. She took hold of it and it pulled her to her feet.

"Thanks…?"

It shook in response. It began to tug away in Elphaba's grasp, so she let go. It thrust itself back into her hand and shook again.

"What do you want from me?"

It floated higher into the air, bringing her along. It moved around the room, slowly. Elphaba's arms started to get tired.

"Wait a clock-tick." She told the broom. It stopped, but didn't lower itself. With strength and grace, she swung one leg over the handle and sat. When she was more comfortable, the broom moved again. It circled the room once, slowly, then, picked up speed for the next round as she got used to flying. It didn't go around a third time. Instead, it stopped just below the skylight and hovered, turning itself so that Elphaba could look outside.

"Oh, no. I am _not_ taking you out in broad day light."

The broom lowered itself so that her feet were touching the ground again, removed itself from her grasp, and went to 'sulk' in the corner.

"Maybe tonight." She said. "If you're good." She smiled wryly. _Who knew that I'd go from having human friends to talking to brooms? Speaking of friends…_She reached into her cloak and pulled out the looking glass Turtle Heart had made for her. She wiped the dust off of it and stared into it.

"Shiz." She said. Her reflection faded to reveal the courtyard at Shiz. At a table, Glinda, Boq, Fiyero, Crope, and Tibbett gathered to eat lunch. Glinda and Boq sat next to each other, holding hands and blushing. Elphaba guessed that Crope and Tibbett were poking fun at them as a couple. Fiyero was absorbed in a book, scribbling things down in his notebook. He smiled every so often when Crope or Tibbett made a funny comment, but stayed focused on his book. Elphaba noticed an unusually large pile of books and notebooks at Fiyero's feet. _Hmm… maybe it's a project, _she thought. She smiled to see her friends having fun. _Even if it is just some fantasy from a mirror_, Elphaba told herself. _Or maybe…Could this actually be happening?_ She turned her gaze back on Glinda and Boq. _No, no. This is definitely my imagination._

When Elphaba thought that she had seen enough, she put down the looking glass. She was getting a bit anxious. Malky hadn't returned yet and the meeting was still hours away. She fidgeted for a bit, hoping that someone would come to the door. She hated that she wasn't able to do anything. She tried to think of something that she could do to help the Resistance. She had already found the green girl, obviously. She didn't know any other Resistance members, so she couldn't help Naytala spread the word about the meeting, and Malky was already taking care of getting the Animals. The only thing left that she could think of was the Grimmerie. She had it in her possession, yes, but they needed to know how it worked and how to read it. She had been told that she had wonderfully powerful magic abilities. Perhaps now was the time that she could finally put them to use without hurting anyone.

She studied the cover of the Grimmerie, still unsure of what she wanted to do with it. She opened it to a table of contents of some sort. It was written in a strange language that was wispy, but bold. She'd never seen anything like it before, but somehow, she understood some of it. In fact, she understood almost all of it. Apparently the Grimmerie was not only a spell book, but a giant, all-encompassing textbook of magic. She scanned the topics: _Introduction to Magic for Extraordinary Mages, Types of Magic, The Sight, The Anatomy of a Spell, Writing Spells, Hiding Magic, Curses, Potions…_ The list seemed infinite. She turned to the first topic (_Introduction to Magic for Extraordinary Mages_) and did what she liked to do most: read.

She was studying _The Anatomy of a Spell_ when Malky came back. He jumped through the cracked window landing silently.

"How was 'work'?" Elphaba asked, still reading.

"Exhausting." He replied.

"Then sleep. We still have that meeting to go to tonight."

Malky groaned. He jumped into Elphaba's lap, surprising her, and curled up. He fell asleep, with her unconsciously scratching his ears. She was still concentrated on the Grimmerie.

A few hours later, Naytala burst through the front door. Elphaba looked up. "What's going on?" She asked.

"I swear, there are Gale Force officers watching every last rat-hole in the Emerald City. I can't imagine how that Cat managed to get any Animals to safety."

At the mention of him, Malky stirred. Elphaba flinched. He'd been so still that she didn't remember that he was even there. He stretched and jumped from her lap to greet Naytala. Even as a Cat, he enjoyed attention like any kitten.

"What's that you've got there?" Naytala asked as she played with Malky.

"Grimmerie." She answered laconically, lazily turning a page.

"What! You can read it? How?"

Elphaba shrugged. "I don't know myself. I just can."

"Could I see it?" Naytala asked hesitantly. Elphaba held up one finger to tell her to wait a moment as she finished her section (_Writing Spells)_. She closed the book and handed it to Naytala.

She opened the book and gazed at the strange lettering. "Hmm… hiding spells… That could use brushing up on…"

"So, you can read it too? What's the big deal then? I thought you said it was rare that anyone could read this."

"It is. It's only powerful mages that can read it, and only a few at that. I guess we're just lucky." Naytala wasn't really paying attention. She was skimming through the book.

"So do you think the Wizard could read it?"

"No. He's a fraud. A damn fraud." She said, looking up. She closed the book and handed it back to Elphaba. "Keep it here. Study it. We need mages in the Resistance."

"How many do we have?"

Naytala sighed. "As of now, two. Have you taken lessons in sorcery?"

"Not exactly. I don't like magic."

"Then learn to like it. From now on, I'll be tutoring you in magic. Uncontrolled magic can destroy you."

Elphaba cringed at the familiar words. "Yeah. I know."

"Right. So today at the meeting, do not, _do not_, reveal that you are green in front of everyone. We have codenames and wear hoods and masks for a reason, and seeing as you're green, you have more reason to keep hidden. I already know too much about you and some members might have a problem with your skin color. Pull Master aside or wait until after the meeting is over to tell him. If he addresses you about it in front of everyone, lie." Naytala instructed. "Do you understand, Fae?"

"Yes." She said, gravely. "I have one question though: is 'Naytala' just a codename?"

Naytala glared at her. "It's who I am. That's all you need to know. Come on. It's time to leave."

Elphaba stood. "Malky, you ready? Let's go!"

Malky appeared out of under the kitchen table. "You have mice." He stated as he followed them out.

For the second time that day, they entered the Resistance headquarters. It was much more crowded than it had been the last time there was a meeting, and fairly loud. The Master stepped up to the podium and the room fell silent.

"Brethren, I have some unfortunate news." Murmurs rippled through the crowd.

"The Wizard has initiated his plan to put the Animals in cages until they forget how to speak. He's starting with the Emerald City, locking the gates. Now, Animals who reside here are being forced into cages. Only when they become animals again will they be released." The clamor among the audience grew louder and more urgent. "Our headquarters will become a haven to any Animals who need to hide. We can smuggle them out of the city, and maybe even Oz, a few at a time. In the meantime, we need to find some way to stall the Wizard. We need to create some chaos so big that it will completely draw his attention away from the Animals, but that won't affect how _we _function. Are there any ideas?"

"Bomb the palace!" A voice shouted.

"Burn the gates down!" Shouted another.

"Poison the food that goes into the palace!"

"Send threatening letters!"

"Give up…"

"Kill the Captain of the Guard!"

"No! Kill the Wizard!"

"QUIET!" The Master's voice boomed over the shouts. " Many of these ideas are good. I will deliberate with some of the head members and come back to you." He motioned for the head members to come up. Naytala grabbed Elphaba's arm and dragged her up with her, leaving Malky to tend to his Animal friends. Two more members went up to the podium. Master looked quizzically at Elphaba, then led them through a door. The door led to a barren hallway. He nodded to the two mysterious members, the opened another door. He, Naytala, and Elphaba walked in. The other members closed the door behind them and stayed in the hall.

"What do we do?" He asked, his voice strained.

"Stall, like you said." Naytala said, fairly gently.

"I…I know, but how? Everything's going so much faster than we thought…"

"Don't worry so much. We'll think of something."

Elphaba cleared her throat.

"Oh. This is Fae, as you know. She has something to tell you."

Elphaba shot her an 'oh-thanks-a-lot' look and took a deep breath.

"I'm the green girl."

"You're not serious." He turned to look at Naytala for confirmation. She nodded.

"And she's a mage."

"So you've been in the Emerald Palace and you have the Grimmerie!"

"I - "

"Yes, to both, but we should probably keep any mention of the Grimmerie within this little group. It's too valuable to lose to some careless mistake, which are becoming increasingly common among the Resistance." Naytala cut in. The Master nodded. Now, Elphaba was wondering who was actually in charge of this operation. Naytala seemed to be the brain behind the Master's voice.

"Those mistakes are going to cost us our lives." The Master mused.

"What kind of mistakes?" Elphaba inquired.

"They're not big mistakes, if that's what you're thinking. I mean, we haven't been caught for them yet…" Naytala answered. "It's mostly little things, like, talking a bit loud about our plans or not watching behind them to see if they're being followed when they come here. Some of the less patient members have been arrested for treason. I say good riddance."

"They won't talk?"

Naytala grinned wryly. "If they even try to tell anyone about the Resistance, their tongues will swell up until they either suffocate or stop trying to talk."

"I'm still not too fond of magic." The Master said to her. "It's powerful, yes, but when used against us, it's deadly."

Elphaba thought about this for a moment. "So why not kill the Wizard's Sorceress?" She asked.

"Who would that be?" The Master and Naytala asked together.

"Madame Morrible."

"Isn't she the Press Secretary?" The Master furrowed his brow.

"Yes, but she's also probably the most powerful sorceress in Oz. She has been for decades." _How could they not know that?_ She wondered.

Naytala and the Master looked at each other, and seemed to come to a silent understanding. The Master smiled and they all stood up to leave.

"Fae, could you get a schedule of any big upcoming events that the Wizard has scheduled? There needs to be a crowd, and obviously, our dear Press Secretary needs to be in attendance. Give it time, though. We can't rush into anything; we need more training. After our next meeting, come back to this room with Naytala."

Elphaba nodded as they walked back to the main hall. Naytala tapped her shoulder.

"Congratulations." Naytala whispered. " You're the first member besides me, of course, that's been allowed to return there to discuss any plans for this organization. Before you know it, you might have a fake title to go with that codename."

Elphaba shrugged. "I think 'Your Greenness' may suffice." Elphaba said sarcastically as they pushed their way back into the fidgety crowd. The Master stepped back up to the podium and smiled mischievously down upon them.

"We, my friends," he started, "have a plan."


	14. In The Emerald City

i know, i know... it's been forever and a half since i've last updated. i have the usual excuses: prolonged writer's block, school, sports, plays...i doubt they're helping. anyway, it's an epic chapter, so enjoy.

this has already been established, but i don't own Wicked.

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**Spring:**

Ever since that meeting in the fall, things were different. Meetings were becoming more frequent, things were more organized… It was as if this plan brought everyone together. They were training harder than ever, just as the Master had promised at the first meeting Elphaba had been to. Training consisted of evading, spying, lock-picking, fighting, and trailing. Everyone had to take part in it. Even the Master.

On the side, Naytala and Elphaba would have daily sorcery sessions. Naytala was amazing with her magic. Elphaba, as naturally gifted as she was, had nothing on her.

"Don't worry about it," Naytala had said one day around midwinter when Elphaba was getting frustrated, "you'll probably be as good as me in no time. You have no idea how long I had to study to be able to do this."

Elphaba laughed bitterly. "Well, with the way things are going, it seems I won't have time to study to be as good as you."

They wouldn't do magic everyday though. Every other day, they would spend time writing out some spells that might be useful in the future: Cloaking spells, Silencing spells, Truth spells, Locking spells, Unlocking spells… They could probably write a book, assuming anyone could read it. They made potions also.

"I feel like a storybook witch." Elphaba told Naytala as she stirred a potion.

"You just need a flying broom or something." Naytala said back, laughing.

_That makes me feel so much better…_Elphaba thought.

Elphaba couldn't decide. Were she and Naytala friends, or were they just accustomed to each other's presence? They were around each other almost every day, but it was mostly for work. They'd laugh sometimes, yes, but it was still work-time, right?

In fight training, Elphaba started out as being labeled 'smart, but weak'. She had a slight figure, yes, but that also made her fairly fast. She would use her speed against her practice opponents. 'It takes more energy to swing and miss than swing and hit.' She reminded herself. She would dodge her way out of fights, only getting a few hits in. Dodging was her way of winning a fight and moving up in the ranks. It wasn't until she faced someone just as fast as her that she actually tried fighting back. Needless to say, she would go home with various bruises and cuts until she started toughening up. Luckily, she had her own personal slave driver to help her with that: Naytala.

Malky stuck around with Elphaba. He lived with her, or rather, on the stairs leading up to her room. He had his missions. He was a spy, of course. Since he was so plainly colored, he could get almost anywhere in the city without looking too conspicuous. News was pretty slow though. Or, maybe they were just getting used to the reports of Animals either getting killed or caged, and some careless Resistance members getting arrested.

"We're getting ignorant." Malky said to Elphaba.

"We've been ignorant."

"Yes, but it's getting worse. When we both joined the Resistance, all of this news about Animals being killed disturbed us. Now--"

"Now it's become more and more common. It's only natural that we become callous."

"So you don't care anymore?"

"Of course I care! I just don't show it. It won't help the situation any."

"So, if Naytala were arrested or if I were caught, you would just carry on like nothing happened?"

"That's not what I said."

"It's what you implied."

Malky had stalked off after some mice after that. As great of a relationship as they had, Malky couldn't deal with Elphaba's stubbornness, and Elphaba couldn't deal with Malky psychoanalyzing everything she said. There were times when she wished Malky couldn't talk back, as hypocritical as that was.

She did keep 'reading' Kumbricia's book. Nothing much happened for another 20 some pages.

**Kumbricia's Book:**

Kumbricia disguised herself as a boy and worked in the stables (She and Lurline decided on the boy's name Umber)… she ended up getting kicked by Lymbret, the ornery stallion (she now sported a clean scar through her left eyebrow)… she took lessons with Lurline, who, as generous as she was, was a complete airhead. Oh, and they were great friends by then… she got into some trouble with teachers arguing ethics… no big deal. It wasn't until Kumbricia turned about 16 when the interesting things started happening. Some guy had seemingly fallen out of the sky, or so it seemed, and was basically handed a throne on a silver platter. He was tearing Oz apart. It was because of him that Oz was divided up the way it was. He sent the Munchkins to Munchkinland, the Quadlings to Quadling country, and the Winkies to the Vinkus. All of the people he considered 'normal' stayed in what is now Gillikin and Glikkus. Everything was under a pretty little contract that said that if the people refused to leave their homes, they'd more than likely be killed in their sleep. It wasn't until after he sent all of these people to their respective corners of Oz when he realized that he gave the best hunting lands to the Winkies. The self-proclaimed dictator of Oz hated the Winkies enough already for their darker complexion and strange skin markings. When they refused to move again, the ruler was furious. He couldn't convince them to leave, so he forced unfair taxes on them and cut off all trade controlled by his government to them. Kumbricia wasn't happy about it and almost nobody would listen to her about how unfair it was. Lurline would listen, but she wouldn't understand. That's as far Elphaba had gotten in that tale.

**Summer:**

By summer, she was sure that she and Naytala were either friends or close to it. They still had their magic sessions, but they were becoming less frequent. Elphaba was just about as good as Naytala now. They replaced their sorcery sessions with fighting and spying tests.

On a particularly hot afternoon, Naytala finally decided to take off her hood. She'd never taken it off before in front of Elphaba, and now she knew why. Naytala's eyes were unmistakably yellow.

"It came from my mother's side," she explained, "You see, my great-grandmother was actually a Wolf. She was raped by some sick human, not because he was attracted to her, but to terrorize her. She gave birth to my grandmother as a result of it. My grandmother had Wolf and human traits, but mostly human from what I could see. She much hairier than most women and her nose a lips were darker, too. Even her eyes were a human color: brown. Well, she married a human had my mother. My mother was born with an even less Wolfish look about her; she's much less hairy and her facial features were all human. Her eyes were brown, too. She married a human, and I was born. The only things that distinguish me from a human of normal lineage are these." She pointed to her eyes.

"Is that why you joined the Resistance? Because of what happened to your great-grandmother?"

Naytala's brows furrowed. "Yes and no."

"What about your mother? Is she part of the Resistance, too?"

"She was killed by the Gale Force."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be." She laughed in spite of herself. "It's not like you killed her."

That was then end of their conversation. Naytala was reluctant to say anything more about her family, and Elphaba respected that.

Elphaba would look into the glass trinket Turtle Heart had made her occasionally. She still only used it to check up on people at Shiz. Around mid-June, Glinda, Fiyero and Boq disappeared. She guessed that the term had ended and they were all home. She didn't think much else of it, but then, something was distracting her.

Also in mid-June, Malky had been caught. He was most likely dead. The Wizard was running out of room in his cages. Elphaba didn't mourn. Well, she did, in her own way, but not by crying or going to church. She just worked harder and fought harder. _Crying is useless._ She told herself_, It's better to do something useful than something useless._ As much as she hated to admit it, Malky was right. She'd become callous. She was barely even surprised when she heard that Malky was caught. She was a bit disturbed, but not surprised. She still had things to keep her mind off of it. Things were speeding up at meetings. Before Malky's capture, Elphaba finally got wind of the perfect event that would definitely lure Horrible Morrible: Lurlinemas Ball at the Emerald Palace. It was a waiting game now. They trained and they waited. They were ready.

August came, and things were slower again. The rush that followed the release of the date they planned to kill Morrible had ended. There was more time for Elphaba to do things like fly the broom around at night and read Kumbricia's book. She'd mastered flight, or rather, she learned to reason with her stubborn broom. It listened to her now, most of the time. Not only that, a white stray cat (no 'C') had made itself at home in her apartment. She called him Malky after her late friend.

**Kumbricia's Book:**

When Kumbricia turned 17, she was discovered as being a girl. She was allowed to stay, by Lurline's request, but she was on thin ice with the family. Lurline had blurted that she had magic, and she was forced into a sorcery class. Meanwhile, the tariffs on the Vinkus were getting higher and higher, but the Winkies still refused to leave. They had resorted to a primitive tribal lifestyle. This made them even less popular in Oz. Land-hungry nobles from Gillikin stole land from the eastern part of the Vinkus. They kept at it until they hit the mountains which were deemed impassable except by Winkie 'savages'. There was only one known way to get past the mountains, and that was around them.

By the time Kumbricia was 18, she was fed up with everything: prejudice, magic lessons, high-society, even Lurline. As nice as she was, her obliviousness was unbearable. Lurline was already sucked into the new ruler's 'marvelous' façade and was determined to find some way to rise up and become his right-hand. So, Kumbricia left. She went to the Vinkus—through the mountains, not around. The trail through the mountains was now known as Kumbricia's Pass. In the Vinkus, she was accepted. Nobody cared that her eyes were a freakish yellow. All they cared about was that they had someone who actually cared enough for them come to help them. Behind her came more support. The people who came were educated. Most of them, actually, were once part of His Ozness's council and left after things started getting out of hand. They either left or were thrown out because they had magic. It seemed that their new ruler was afraid of it. Kumbricia and the mages worked together to formulate spells, powerful ones, that they might use against their dictator should this feud come to war. The non-magical people in their group would go around the Vinkus helping the sick and poor. Some would train alongside the Winkies in their army, while others would try to find ways to reason with the 'vizier'(yes, he titled himself). It was around this time when Kumbricia met Starem. He was a soldier, originally from Gillikin. He took her for more than just a brain or magic wand. They hit it off right away. Soon after they became friends, they became, well, _more_ than friends. They were in love. Unfortunately for them, the Vizier's people had caught on to their activities and were determined to destroy the organization all together. At 19 now, Kumbricia was a driving force in helping the Winkies. In the Vizier's eyes, she was considered inferior because of her gender and age, but she was still a threat, which made him that much more angry. His troops stormed the Vinkus to find the 'Witch' that was destroying Oz. Starem and Kumbricia lived for a year in hiding. They eloped as the opposing forces got closer and closer to finding them and they kept working to free the Vinkus from oppression. Finally, the Vizier's troops were closing in on them. They resorted to living alongside a pack of wolves at the base of The Great Kells, near the Thousand Year Grasslands to lead the troops away from any defenseless villages. Almost 20 years old, and they'd been on the run for almost a year. Their time living free was coming to a close and they knew it. It wasn't long before they were caught. Kumbricia managed to make them let Starem go free, but she had no such luck. As a squad of the Vizier's guards dragged her away, Starem gave her his pendant, a sapphire cut into the shape of (ironically) a teardrop, as his last gift to her. Needless to say, Kumbricia was taken to the closest town to be 'burned at the stake for being the Witch she was'. They waited almost a week before actually burning her because the Vizier himself wanted to witness the destruction of an evil force in Oz. Lurline came as well, but not to witness her friend's murder. When Judgment Day finally came, Kumbricia spoke out to Oz, asking them "What is it I've done wrong, but try to free a nation from oppression? Have I killed anyone? It is your Vizier that has killed these people, yet I'm blamed for the bloodshed. Hear me, you can still change how this ends! Lurline… You can fix this. Oz, I'll warn you now that if the Vizier, or anyone like him, is not stopped, the dark days we have endured are bound to repeat themselves! Perhaps another like me will rise to the challenge." In the middle of her speech, the flames were lit beneath her feet and everyone watched as she was swallowed by the flames. Nobody was paying attention when the Vizier collapsed. Nobody paid attention when more than half of his army was slain. Only when the flames died down did people look around to find everything in chaos. The only leader left that was a trusted part of the Vizier reign was Lurline. She built Oz a government and made laws protecting the Vinkus then disappeared. That was how the book ended.

**Spring:**

**Shiz:**

"Fiyero, what's going on with you?" Boq asked him one day.

"Huh?" Fiyero responded dully as he leafed through a large text book.

"You never explained why you're so determined to graduate this year."

Fiyero rubbed his face with his hands in frustration. He couldn't concentrate. He hadn't gotten a good night's sleep in weeks. His eyes were bloodshot.

"I have to find Elphaba." He said.

Boq looked at him sympathetically. "I know you miss her. We all do, but it's been months and-"

"You don't get it, do you?"

"Get what? She's gone, and you're killing yourself over her."

"You talk about her like she's dead! I'm leaving and I'll find her. I don't care if it kills me!"

Boq squared his jaw. "We do. Me, Glinda, Tibbet, Crope… even some of the teachers are worried about you." He argued. "I know you won't believe me, but we miss Elphaba just as much as you do."

"No you don't. You're lying!" Fiyero knew in the back of his mind that he had no right to say what he said; his lack of sleep was making him aggressive and unreasonable.

"Oh yeah?" Boq countered. "Do you know how it feels to lose your best childhood friend and find her in college just to lose her again? Did you know that Glinda still cries because she misses her? I can't even count how many times I've comforted her for that."

"I-"

"Did you know that she was going to try suicide?"

Fiyero fell silent.

"Yeah. Don't even THINK that we don't care about her. We do."

An awkward silence hung in the air for a few minutes.

"When did it happen?" Fiyero asked solemly

"It was about three weeks after Elphaba disappeared. Remember when Nessarose decided that she hated Elphaba?"

Fiyero nodded.

"Do you remember the day she caused this whole scene during lunch about how Elphaba was a heretic, evil person that never cared about any of us and just used us to get what she wanted?"

"It's not true" Fiyero mumbled.

"We know that, but Glinda was already emotionally vulnerable. It made her feel like she was just some expendable being and that no one truly cared about her."

"Weren't you two going out at that point? She must have known that you cared about her."

"Kind of, but you know how if something terrible happens, something so bad that it makes your entire life seem bad?"

Fiyero nodded. "Like how you forget about all of the good things in life and it seems like nothing's worth living for?"

"Exactly. She went back to her dorm and was about to drink an entire bottle of sleeping potion. She forgot her purse, so I followed her back and caught her just as she was about to down everything. I yelled something- I don't even remember what- and she just dropped the bottle and broke down, sobbing."

"Oh, Oz…I'm so sorry. I didn't know. I wasn't thinking when I said you didn't care."

"I know. It's fine." Boq said, trying to keep the thickness out of his voice. "Listen, I have to go. Glinda and I are going to dinner. Do you want to come?"

"No. It's your date. I'm not getting between that. I've got to study anyway."

Secretly, Boq was relieved that he turned down the offer.

"Okay. See you later." He waved, walking through the door. "And get some sleep!" He called. Fiyero had no problem taking that advice. He fell into a restless sleep just minutes after bringing his attention back to the book. It was sheer luck when he did well on the test the next day.

Graduation came quickly. Fiyero managed somehow to survive all of his classes and get honors. The moment the ceremony ended, Fiyero was moving all of his belongings into a carriage bound for the Emerald City. Boq and Glinda begged him not to leave so soon, but his mind was made up. He was going to find Elphaba as soon as he could.

"When you find her, you'd better bring her back here so we can see her." Boq said just before he left.

"And there'd better be a ring on her left hand." Glinda added. She winked and gave him a tight hug, whispering, "Please don't disappear on us like she did." She released him.

"I'll write. I promise. Stay out of trouble."

Glinda rolled her eyes at him and deliberately pressed herself closer to Boq.

Boq noticed that Fiyero was fidgeting. "Hey, I know you're anxious to leave, so I wish you the best of luck. Keep us posted and know that if anything goes wrong, we have your back. Don't hesitate to ask for help."

Glinda nodded in agreement.

"Thanks."

The carriage driver drummed his fingers on the side of the vehicle. Fiyero took the hint and climbed into the carriage.

"Bye." He said. "I'll miss you both." He felt like he should say something more, but he couldn't think of anything fast enough. The carriage pulled away from Shiz. He watched as the two waving figures got smaller and seemed to disappear and did something he felt like he hadn't done all year. Sleep.

**Summer:**

**Emerald City:**

**Fiyero:**

Fiyero spent his first week adjusting to the city. He couldn't seem go adapt to the city sounds or the cold, empty feeling of his apartment. It felt even emptier knowing that he couldn't walk 20 feet and talk to Boq or Glinda. His apartment was large, especially for one person. He made sure it was that way. _In case I find Elphaba_, he thought. He'd also taken the time to find a room with a magnificent view of the sunset in the evening. No matter how homey he tried to make it, he still felt incomplete.

His second week in the city he explored the slums of the city. They were dirty, depressing, and smelled terrible. He asked around for Elphaba, but nobody could tell him anything about her other than what they picked up from the Wizard. One day though, he came across a fairly young woman who looked almost startled when he asked about her.

"Aelphaba?" she'd said.

"Elphaba." He corrected politely.

"Could you describe her?"

"Well, she's green…"

Fiyero could've sworn that the lady clenched her jaw, as if she were withholding information.

"Can't say I've ever seen a green woman before." She said unconvincingly.

"Please," Fiyero pressed, "It's really important to me. I have to find her."

"I'm sorry sir, but I can't help you." With that, she walked away (fairly quickly, Fiyero noted) toward a ramshackle building tucked into a corner. Fiyero just shrugged and stalked off with his hands in his pockets. Another week went by, and he found himself in the same general area where he'd met the odd woman. He'd overheard a hushed conversation about a resistance meeting of some sort in this part of the city. If Elphaba were working against the Wizard, this must be the organization she was working for.

-- "asking for me? Who was it?" Fiyero heard this voice from an alley close by.

"I don't know, but they weren't with the Resistance." The voices were familiar, but he couldn't place where he'd heard them before.

"What did they look like?"

"Kind of tall, weird skin markings… blue diamonds, I thi"—

That was all he heard. He dashed after the sound, but ran head-long into a brick wall. Sitting, he rubbed his nose and glared at the structure that he ran into. He couldn't recall the last time he miscalculated the sound he was following. Perhaps it was just the angles of the street interfering. A trail of bright red paint drew his gaze upward. He could've smacked himself for not noticing it before. "RESISTANCE," he read quietly. Finally, he'd made a breakthrough.

**Elphaba:**

It was time for another meeting. Master was concerned that after a few months of idleness, the Resistance members were forgetting their duty.

"Do we really need to attend this pep talk?"

Naytala rolled her eyes. "Unfortunately. Hurry up. We're going to be late."

Elphaba tied up her cloak and followed Naytala out the door. When they were almost at the headquarters, Naytala spoke.

"Elphaba?"

"Yes?" Elphaba responded automatically. "Oh shit…I didn't…I mean…" She bit her lip.

"I won't tell your real name. Don't worry." Naytala assured her. "But about a week ago, someone came here asking around for a girl named Elphaba."

"Someone was asking for me?" she asked, mouth agape. "Who was it?"

"I don't know, but they weren't with the Resistance." Naytala glanced around and opened the door to the headquarters.

"What did they look like?" Elphaba pressed.

"Kind of tall, weird skin markings… blue diamonds, I think." Elphaba closed the door behind them.

_Fiyero…_she realized immediately. On one hand, she was elated that he would come all the way to the Emerald City to find her. On the other hand, she knew that she couldn't be found. If she was caught, he would be caught and probably killed. That's why she didn't tell anyone where she was. She distanced herself from her friends to keep them safe.

When the meeting ended, Naytala had to shake Elphaba out of her thoughts.

"What's wrong with you?" She exclaimed. "I called you 10 times and you're here staring off into space. Did you hear a thing that Master said?"

"I… No, my thoughts were somewhere else. Sorry." She stood and brushed herself off.

"Good thing none of it was important, then." She scolded.

It went right over Elphaba's head. "I'm going home. I need to think about something."

Naytala looked the slightest bit concerned. "Hey, don't get caught, okay? We need you here."

Elphaba nodded and walked out. She didn't go straight home though. She walked aimlessly around the dark, moonlit streets and alleyways until she came to the same square where the palace was. Even at night, it had a perplexing glow to it. She stopped to stare at the pinpricks of light that decorated the walls. Looking around she saw a quaint chapel. In the bad lighting she could still see the lazy vines that had chosen to make their homes on the pale walls. She could see a faint light inside that seemed to beckon to her. Before she knew it, she was opening the heavy wooden door. Inside she was surrounded by all sorts of Lurlinist icons, statues, figurines, and paintings alike. Her eye caught on a colorful pattern on the floor where she stood. Blues, reds, purples, greens, oranges, yellows and pinks flooded into the foyer through an ornate stained glass window. Silently, Elphaba praised the artist who placed the window so perfectly, that both the sun and the moon could create the glorious palette of colors that she now bathed in.

"Who's there?" An old woman called. Elphaba could hear footsteps coming toward her and a cane.

"You needn't worry about me. I came to admire the art."

Elphaba saw the woman's eyes widen. She gave her a toothy grin. "I know you." She said teasingly.

Elphaba's brow furrowed and the all too familiar sense of paranoia swept into her mind.

"You're the child to whom I gave the flying broom." She was still smiling.

"You!" Elphaba exclaimed. "What are you?"

"I am Yackle. Just Yackle. Do you not recognize this place?"

"No."

"This is the same church you were brought to after…" The woman stopped and cackled, as if what had happened were a joke.

Elphaba just barely restrained the urge to strike her. Instead, she looked about the room, trying to remember. She couldn't believe that this was the same place she was when she was sick. Wouldn't she recognize it? Or perhaps the shock of getting raped had dulled her senses.

"You've grown stronger since we've last met." The older woman observed.

Elphaba merely stared.

"Talk to Yackle. She doesn't bite… hard." She chuckled at her own joke.

"What is it that you want with me?"

Yackle ignored her. "Tell me, dearie: are you ready for the challenges to come?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Toppling a government might be enough to fill the average person's plate." She continued.

"What?"

"But we aren't average, are we, dearie?"-she let out a short burst of laughter- "Now, froggy's past is back to claim her. What will green-y do? Yackle wants to know. Yackle will help." She wasn't asking how she could help. She was telling her that she would help.

"Who are you? What are you?" Elphaba exclaimed. "What the hell do you want?"

"Yackle has already told you." She cackled. "Your future isn't like most… So many paths, but which one to take? Which to take, what to take? You needn't worry yourself over it… Yackle will help…Yackle will see the future and she will help…Yackle knows best." Her voice faded mysteriously as she hobbled away. Elphaba stared after her, a nauseating feeling of anticipation rising within her, but at the same time, she wondered what the crazy old woman knew that she didn't.

* * *

Thanks to: Annibelle White for saving my plot. (rather, what will hopefully become a plot)

I'm not going to lie: Updates will either be slow or non-existant. It all depends on school, motivation, the musical, and diving... in that order.

thanks for reading, and remember, reviews are ALWAYS appreciated. even bad ones (just not so much).

e.r.


	15. Hello, Goodbye

Hi, all. Once again, sorry for not posting for a while ( i have a sinking feeling that i may be saying that a lot). i know nobody really cares, but friday was definitely my first diving meet EVER (99.something-or-other points... is that good?) and tomorrow's my birthday!!! (can anyone tell that i'm hyper? lol)

Thanks to Phantom's Muse and Jacqueline Prince for reviewing and Annibelle White for reading this over before i posted.

**

* * *

Emerald City:**

**Elphaba:**

"_You can't be here!" Elphaba cried at Fiyero_

"_What? But Elphie, I love you." The distressed confusion in his eyes was unbearable. She turned away, pacing._

"_You can't! You'll be killed!"_

"_I don't care. I want to be with you." He grabbed her and forced her to face him. "I want to be with you. I. Love. You." She placed her hands lightly on his chest._

"_I lo-" Suddenly, the room turned crimson. The palms of her hands felt disgustingly sticky. She looked at her hands. Red liquid spilled out onto the floor, Fiyero's chest seeming to be the source. She looked at him, but his eyes were lifeless and he sank against her._

"_No… no, no, no…" Then she screamed, sobbing. "FIYERO!"_

"Fae?" The voice sounded far away. "FAE, WAKE UP!"

Elphaba opened her eyes and found herself safely in her bedroll with Naytala standing over her.

"I walked in and you were screaming and crying in your sleep." Naytala said accusingly. "Care to explain who Fiyero is?"

Elphaba sat up and ran her hand through her hair. "It was nothing. Just a nightmare." She still felt dazed by how real it all felt. _Maybe I do need Yackle's help…_

Naytala looked unsure. "Alright then."

Elphaba pulled herself out the covers, her old clothes hanging loosely over her thin frame.

"When was the last time you ate?" Naytala asked.

Elphaba shrugged. "Why do you ask?"

"You're thin as a rail and still training hard. You need to be eating." Naytala walked to the cupboards. "Do you even have any food here?" She opened the cupboard doors loudly. She shrieked as she felt something brush against her legs.

"What the hell was that?" She screeched.

Elphaba laughed silently, kneeled and clicked her tongue. From behind a table ran a white cat. It rubbed against Elphaba's knees and she fed it some crumbs from her pocket.

"So you'd rather waste your money feeding a cat than feed yourself?" Naytala half scolded. Elphaba picked up the cat and handed him to Naytala.

"No, he catches the mice that have been eating my food for me; I waste my money on keeping warm." She pointed to the stove.

Naytala muttered something under her breath. "So, what do you call this matted thing?"

"Can't you guess?" Elphaba smiled ever so slightly. "Malky."

**Fiyero:**

_It's only been a few weeks…I can find her. I know she's here; I can find her._ These were the words Fiyero kept repeating to himself, but they were getting old. He felt like he was running in circles. All of the evidence he found that that told him Elphaba was in the city led him back to one spot, but when he searched that area, he found nothing.

He did, however find out shortly after he arrived that the Gale Force was looking for her also, but for being involved in a radical Animal rights group called the Resistance. He was careful not to tangle with them. If they thought that Elphaba was a dangerous fugitive, they weren't to be trusted.

**Elphaba:**

He was looking for her, and she knew it. She took special precautions so that she wouldn't be found. She met with people from the Resistance in places she would, as a college student, stay away from. This included night-clubs and sporting events. It made her sick to even be around these places with the dirty atmosphere and dirtier people, but she COULDN'T be caught. It was too close to Lurlinemas to leave the Resistance now. She had a duty. An entire race depended on her to stick with it.

Even so, she found herself going to the church with the stained glass windows for peace. She didn't see Yackle again. She would kneel before an alcove with a large stained glass window above it, as if she were praying, and relish in the silence and beauty that surrounded her. She would sit for hours before a maunt would tell her that it was time for them to clean the floors and altars. She guessed that they only told her this because she unnerved them and they wanted her to leave, but she would go, as they asked.

When the sky turned dark, she would take out her broom streak across the sky. She observed the city from a different angle as she completed assignments for the Resistance that would be almost impossible to complete otherwise. From her perch, it seemed, she could see everything. She saw young men lighting the streetlamps, she saw happy families sharing quality time, she saw the guards changing shifts and sometimes, like now, she would fly to the palace and she'd see the Wizard in his study.

She smirked as she looked into the window. There he was, the bane of Oz himself, sorting through papers. It was obvious that he was frustrated. She wondered for a moment, what could be bothering him so. Then she heard a blast behind her. She whipped around and watched the remnants of an explosion waft upwards in the air a few blocks away. She forgot herself and admired the orange and yellow flames contrasting with the purpling night sky. She looked back to the window. The Wizard had risen and was looking at her in shock. He yelled something, still staring at her. She smirked and darted away before the guards came around. She made loops around the city, making sure to be seen only in places far from where she lived before going safely home.

**Fiyero:**

Night. It was when he worried about Elphaba most. 'What if she's freezing now?' led to 'what if she's starving?' and 'what if she's sick?'. Always, this led to 'what if she's dying or dead?'. He just wished that someone, Kumbricia, Lurline, or even the Unnamed God, would grant him some sort of sign that she was alright.

Tonight, he stood on his balcony staring at the waning moon. He leaned over the edge to see street vendors packing up for the night and sighed. Suddenly, an explosion shattered the night's silence. He could see plumes of smoke illuminated by flames rising in the distance between the palace and his apartment. He watched in silence as people emerged, sleepy-eyed, from their homes. It wasn't long before there was a crowd in the street rippling with confused chatter. As they discussed what on earth might be going on, his eyes followed the trail of smoke into the sky. He gazed at the patterns that it made, inky against a star-spattered backdrop. He wasn't sure how long he'd been staring, but when he looked back to the streets, everyone had gone back into their houses. He scanned the streets one last time before deciding to head inside. Just as he was going to turn around, black cloth flashed before him a mere six feet away. He jerked around and followed the movement with his eyes. Surely it wasn't what it seemed… A black clothed figure on a broom? _Sweet Oz… I must be hallucinating…_

**Elphaba:**

The next morning, she was shaken awake by Naytala.

"What is _this_?" She pointed to the front page of the Emerald Sun newspaper. Sleepily, Elphaba grabbed the paper and read the headline. "Green Girl of Oz Gains New Nickname: Witch!" She started reading the article aloud. "Last night, eleven Emerald City residents, including our Wonderful Wizard, reported seeing the green girl just outside of their windows flying around on a broom… blah blah blah… yadduh, yadduh, yadduh… Also last night, two bombs went off simultaneously, breaking down the walls of an Animal containment center. Many Animals escaped and are being chased down by guards and police forces. Nobody was killed in the explosion; only two guards were injured…. The bombing is believed to be linked to the Witch…" She looked up from the article. "That's pretty good. No one's dead yet, and I'm still here and alive."

Naytala glared at her. "You were seen! Not just by one person, but by eleven people _and_ the Wizard!-"

-"Actually, ten people and the Wizard."

"Whatever! And what's this talk of a 'flying broom'? Did you enchant something? Do you know how dangerous—"

"I didn't enchant anything. The broom was given to me before I even joined the Resistance. I checked it for curses and tracking spells; it was clean." Elphaba replied calmly.

Naytala shook her head. "I don't know how you pulled that off and live to tell the tale. It says you were spotted in the Northeastern part of the city… we live in the West portion…"

"Trust me. I'm not going to be the one that gets us caught."

"You'd better not be. If you are, I want the honor of killing you myself." Naytala grumbled. "Just remember, everything we've been doing is building up to the day we kill Morrible. Don't do anything stupid until we get rid of the brains and brawn of their operation."

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Yes, mother."

"Well, if you're going to be like that, maybe I won't treat you to breakfast." Naytala teased as she waved a cloth full of food in front of Elphaba's face. Elphaba just shrugged.

Naytala furrowed her brow as she laid the food out on the table. "I was only kidding. You need to eat. Sit down and feed yourself before I start shoving food down your throat. Don't think that I won't."

**Fiyero:**

Fiyero woke up mid-afternoon the morning after the explosion. He'd been kept awake by the Gale Forcers storming the streets looking for the person who set off the explosion. Groggily, he climbed out of bed and picked up the paper outside his apartment door, barely giving it a second glance. Finally, after drinking his coffee, he read the bold face words of the front page.

"Green Girl of Oz Gains New Nickname: Witch!"

Fiyero hastily read the article. The words 'green girl flying on a broom' made him want to kick himself. He wasn't hallucinating last night; he'd seen her for himself. He was so close! He threw the paper in frustration, scattering the pages across the room and walked out the door. He sighed and wandered haplessly around the City of Emeralds, trying to loosen his nerves. He needed to relax.

**Elphaba:**

Elphaba was back in the church in her usual spot, lost in her thoughts. No, not her thoughts. She wasn't thinking at all. She just sat as if waiting. She listened to the people come in and out of the heavy wooden doors. She listened to the priests and ministers preaching 'goodness', whatever that was. She listened to the bells chiming the hours, but what she enjoyed most was listening to the silence when every one was gone. Silence was the purest noise, she decided. It couldn't be broken down into pitches or rhythms and it was the hardest to sustain. She let herself drown in it until she couldn't even hear the bells toll, or the people enter, and she stayed like this until she was shaken out of her meditation. She gasped when it happened.

"Shh…Don't be frightened, greenie. It's only Mother Yackle." The old woman smiled broadly. "Or maybe you should be frightened…"

"What do you mean?" She whispered.

"Here comes a fork in the road. Which road will you take?"

"Yackle, you're speaking in riddles. What do you know?"

The crone cackled. "I can never tell, Miss Witch. It would make things too easy. Easy for me, easy for you."-she gasped suddenly-"Oh! But I must be going now! Fate is coming! So close, so close!"

"I don't understand—"

"You will! The fork in the road is coming. Fate is coming faster... There is no room for Yackle right now." The hag called as she hobbled away as fast as her old legs could take her.

Elphaba sat staring after her, trying to decipher what the old woman had said.

"Excuse me. Miss? Do you have any pamphlets with pictures of the church?" A deep voice called from behind her. She stood slowly, as not to misplace her hood.

"There." She pointed. She glanced at the man, curious. Her heart began to pound in her chest. It was Fiyero, right there in front of her. She longed to speak with him as Elphaba, to see how he was doing, to see how everyone was doing. Deep down, she wanted him to save her from the life that she'd chosen, but she knew better than to call out. As she'd decided before, she couldn't be found or he'd be hurt. But she saw recognition flash across his features.

"Elphie?" He asked hesitantly.

"I think you're mistaken." She lied.

"No, I'm not." He insisted. "Elphaba, I know it's you."

"Sir, you must be confusing me with somebody." It was killing her to lie like this.

"Why are you doing this?" He was hurting and she could tell. "Elphaba, please, at least talk to me."

She tapped her foot, feigning impatience. "I'll speak with you in an hour, if only to prove that you're mistaken. I need to get back to my prayers, _sir_."

"That's all I ask. I'll wait for you by the fountain in the square." He sped. "You don't know how great it is to see you again." He grinned ever so slightly and walked away.

She waited a few minutes until she was absolutely sure that he was gone. Lucky for her, the sun was setting, which would make it easier for her to run if he tried to follow. She darted through the streets back towards the corn exchange.

"Fabala!"

She stopped and turned around, inches from her front door. _Stupid, stupid, stupid!_ She chided herself. Fiyero was at the end of the alley. How he was able to follow her, she couldn't begin to guess. Eyes wide, she turned back around and fumbled with her key. Finally, the key slid into the lock. As quickly as she could, she dashed inside and slammed the door. The door didn't close. Fiyero had managed to slide his foot in the door jam.

"Elphaba, you're in trouble, let me in." He grunted as he tried to wrestle the door open without hurting her.

"You're trouble! Go away." She succeeded in putting a sharp edge in her words. She had her back to the door and was pushing backwards with all of her weight.

"If you talk to me, I promise I'll never come back unless you tell me that I can. I haven't seen or heard from you in a year. I won't be ignored like this."

"It's hard to ignore you when you're breaking into my house." She said, struggling with the door.

"Elphaba, I just--" His voice got more desperate.

"No! I cut you all off for a reason."

He sighed. "Fifteen minutes. That's all I'm asking for." He felt the door finally give way and he fell over at Elphaba's feet.

"Graceful, aren't you?" She teased then turned serious again. "Fifteen minutes. Come on, we'll go somewhere a bit more comfortable than the stairwell."

Fiyero picked himself up and followed Elphaba up the stairs into a single, broken-down room. She offered him a chair and he sat politely.

"What do you want to know?"

"I want to know why you left us."

"The government is corrupt and needs fixing. That's all I'll tell you." She paced silently then shivered slightly. She looked into the woodstove and cursed. "Sorry about the cold. I ran out of wood and coal."

Fiyero looked worried.

"Oh, don't look at me like that. I'm not a little girl. I can take care of myself." She snapped.

"I don't doubt that you can take care of yourself. I doubt that you will, or that you have the resources to." Fiyero offered. "When was the last time you ate?"

She thought for a moment. "A while ago."

"Elphaba…"

"Fiyero, this is the first time you've seen me in a year and you think you can tell me how to take care of myself. I've gotten along perfectly fine in that year. What makes you think I need help now?"

"You're not eating, you have no heat… It'll be winter soon! What are you going to do then? You'll get sick! You'll freeze to death."

"What the hell do you care what happens? This will probably be the last time you ever see me. You have to go back to school anyway."

Fiyero stood and grabbed hold of Elphaba's shoulders, ignoring her protests. "I'm your FRIEND, Elphaba! Of course I care! I cared enough to graduate early to come find you! I CARE about you! And…" He let go of her. "I don't want to lose you again."

She stared at the ground, speechless.

"It's been fifteen minutes." She said.

"Yeah. I know."

Silence.

"Do you have anything else to say?"

He sighed heavily. "Yes. I'm not leaving."

"Don't do this to me. I've tried so hard to keep you, all of you, out of trouble."

"I'm not leaving you like this."

"Leave, Fiyero."

"No."

"Fiyero, if you care, leave!"

"I do care, and I won't leave."

"Get OUT!" She yelled.

"What will you do? Call the police?" He challenged.

"I'll…"

"Hurt me? Kill me? Go ahead, do it! See if I care!"

"GODDAMNIT FIYERO!" Elphaba's features twisted and she turned away. It was only when she shuddered that he realized she was crying.

"Elphaba!" He rushed to her side and instinctively wrapped his arms around her. "Oz… I'm sorry. I didn't mean it…"

The tears that she'd kept dormant for a year erupted in a steady stream. She grabbed the closest cloth, Fiyero's shirt, and buried her face in it trying to keep her tears from sight. Being in Fiyero's arms made her cry harder because she knew that she couldn't stay with him without endangering his life. Fiyero kissed the top of her hair in an attempt to comfort her.

"Shh… it's okay. I'm here." He said softly. He paused sighed the words "I'll always be here"

Elphaba lifted her head from his chest. "I – no!… "—she twisted in his hold—"Fiyero, don't you understand? This… thing, it can't be. I don't want to be responsible for your life."

Fiyero held her more tightly. "You won't be. It's my choice and I want to be with you. I don't care what happens."

"I DO care what happens. I'd rather hide in this hole-in-the-wall and know that you're safe than put you in danger. Just…please, Fiyero. Listen to me. You have a life to live, people to see, things to do." She pulled free of him. "I have no place in your life."

"You don't really think that, do you?"

"Yes, I do think that. You just want to be with me because you're curious about me. You think I'm intriguing. You want to know if things feel different with me because of my skin. Once you find out that it's just the same as anyone else, you'll go away. Save me the heartbreak and go now." She ordered.

"It's not like that! I think you know that. Your heart is just too big for its own good. You'd rather suffer for the world than let the world bear its own pain."

"I HAVE no heart, I have no soul… I have no SELF! There is nothing here for you to like, let alone love! I—"

That was when he kissed her for the first time, slow and sweet. She was in his arms again, sagging against him in shock. He closed his eyes and felt warmth rushing through him from his lips. She didn't know what to do, and her body took control. Her arms found their way around his neck and she was kissing him back. When her mind finally caught up with her body, she pulled away quickly, surprised by herself. She was breathless and scared.

Fiyero stared at her. He didn't know what to do. He had felt her kiss back, of course, and it made him feel amazing. Electricity was still flowing through his veins, but as he looked at her now, she looked haunted, hunted, just terrified. Should he kiss her again? Should he talk to her?

"Please… just go." She whispered. "I'll admit that once I had feelings for you, but times have changed. I'm not going to pursue any relationships now."

"I…" He sighed. "I'm sorry. I thought that maybe you might feel the same way I feel."

"Fiyero…"

"No, you're right. I was stupid to have thought even for a moment that you still had feelings for me. Here."- he pulled a small envelope out of his shirt pocket, scribbled something on the back, and held it out to her-"I don't want this if it doesn't mean anything anymore." And he walked out without a word.

With trembling hands, Elphaba looked at the envelope. On the back, Fiyero had written his address. Hesitantly, she opened the envelope. Inside was the burnt-edged piece of paper that Glinda had made her spell with the ironically bold words:

_Elphaba loves Fiyero._

And for the second time in ten minutes, she cried.

* * *

I hope to have the next chapter up soon... (but soon for me could mean _anything_)

e.r.


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